Loving You Behind Closed Doors
by Deyinel
Summary: Shego finally confesses her feelings for Ron, but he is in love with Kim, and has always seen Shego as nothing more than a villain. Perhaps she can show him just who she is, as well as who he has given his heart to. Rongo, obviously. Chapter 15 is up!
1. Behind Closed Doors

**Why?**

Disclaimer: Not mine. If it was, my stories would be on T.V. And I would be very wealthy. ;)

Okay, I thought up this one shot while I was in Costa Rica, which was a fabulous trip, by the way. I might continue it, the story, not the trip, but only if a lot of people want me too. So, please review and tell me if you do. And what you think. I'm open to constructive criticism, but please, no flames. They make me sad.

Anyway, enjoy!

-----------------------------------

SMASH!

A green and black desk lamp lay shattered on the floor, partially melted from contact with a plasma encased fist. Shego glared at the lamp, then turned and stalked away from it. She slammed a fist into the wall, green paint flying as she punched through the outer casing. Turning once more she finally spoke, voice raw with emotion.

"She treats you like dirt!" she snarled at the empty room. "And you don't even realize it! You all but worship her, and for what? So she can drop you as soon as the next pretty face comes along?" The villainess suddenly sank down on the edge of her bed, all the fight going out of her.

"You deserve better than her," she whispered. "You're stronger and smarter than you feel, than she makes you feel."

She squirmed around on the bed until she was lying on her stomach. Then she reached underneath the mattress and felt around with her fingers. She felt her gloved hand close around the edge of a warn photograph and drew it out. It had no frame and was folded twice. She glanced self-consciously about her, in spite of the fact that her room was empty except for her, the door locked. Then she gently unfolded the picture.

It had been taken by a security camera in one of Drakken's lairs, so the quality wasn't the best, but that was immaterial. It showed a young man in a black shirt, gloves and gray cargo pants. He was pressed against the wall slightly, preparatory to peering round a corner. In spite of that his thoughts seemed to be elsewhere as he had an almost-smile on his face and his eyes seemed to look far away beneath his thatch of blond hair.

Shego put out a hand, almost shyly and traced his jawline with her forefinger. "She's so self centered, Ron," Shego told him, as though the boy in the picture could hear her. "Why do you think you get no credit on missions? I know she usually does more than you, but you're always there risking your neck for her. And yet _she_ is the only person ever shone on the news. The rest of the world doesn't even know your name."

Shego moved her fingers over the photo again, touching Ron's face, his eyes, his hair. An unguarded tear slipped from the corner of her eye and rolled slowly down her pail cheek. Shego failed to notice the tear until it fell onto her bedspread.

When she saw it her mood changed once again. She glared at it, then angrily stuffed the picture back under her mattress.

"And you just put up with it!" she accused, rising to her feet. "You could have someone better! Someone who appreciates you, and deserves you!" Her voice was furious, but as she spoke more tears forced their way between her eye lids, as though eager to join the first. The villainess stomped to her punching bag and proceeded to attack it with as hatred as she did Kim Possible.

Finally, she dropped in one motion until she was crouched on the floor. There she rested her dark head in her arms and let herself sob.

"Oh, Ron." The words were muffled by her tears and hair. "_You could have me._"

Then she did not speak, she merely cried. But no one heard her through the thick walls of her isolated room.

And that was just the way she wanted it.

----------------------------------------

There it is, then. It always feels to me as if Shego puts on a tough face in public to hide something, in this case secrete feelings about a certain sidekick. Once again, if lots of people want me to make this into a story I can handle that, but I would have to wait until I finish one of the three other fics I currently have going.

Oh, sorry about the length, I couldn't make this one any longer without making it boaring. If I continue, the other chapters will be longer.

So, review and tell me what you think. As always I am open to help with grammar and spelling. How else would I improve?


	2. Flying saucers and a world of hurt

Why? Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Must I be forced to rend my heart in two by saying this in every chapter? Well, clearly I must. I don't own any aspects of the show Kim Possible. Are you happy now?

Okay, I know I said I wasn't going to update this until one of my other stories was finished, but I'm having a bit of writer's block with them, so I decided to try writing a little of chapter two for this story, and the whole thing just streamed out of me. Cool, yes?

So, enjoy!

---------------------------------------

"Ron, try to not alert every henchman in the lair, okay?" Kim Possible dusted off her black gloved hands and cast a disdainful glance at her companion. Ron lowered his head. So he had tripped over a bucket and mop some cleaner had left in the hallway and alerted a couple of guards. He hadn't _meant_ to, and shouldn't that be what mattered?

But all he said was "Sorry, KP. I guess it's my two left feet acting up." He chuckled halfheartedly, then realized Kim had continued without him and hurried to catch up.

Following his partner through the twists and turns of Drakken's latest base of evil operations, Ron kept his eyes on her fiery hair, so as to ensure he didn't lose track of her. However, his thoughts wondered.

Lately, it seemed, he couldn't do anything right. He was either too slow, or too loud, or too immature. Kim found fault with everything he did and didn't do. He knew why that was, but knowing didn't make it any better.

"Manky..." he muttered under his breath.

That boy was the cause of everything. Ever since Kim started dating him, ever since thatdisasterous blush incident, Kim hadn't stopped extolling Josh's virtues, as well as proclaiming his, Ron's, substandard personality, looks, etcetera. This had been the case with each and every boyfriend Kim had had over the years, but none of them had lasted even half as long as Josh's month and a half, or worried Ron this much.

Because if Kim really loved Monkey-boy, and wanted to stay with him forever...

_Where does that leave me?_

Ron knew what Josh thought of him. One day after gym Josh had caught Ron in the locker room and informed the blond that any attempt at coming between him and Kim would result in a trip to the nurse. Ron had replied, with some fire, that he would keep the peace as long as Josh didn't hurt Kim, to which Josh had snorted and stormed off.

What Ron had said was true. He wanted Kim to be happy above all else, and if Monkey-boy made her happy, then that was that.

It didn't make things very easy for Ron on missions, though.

Crash!

"RON!"

"Look – over there!"

"Intruders!"

Ron staggered blindly back from a completely out of place buffet filled with clattering, china dishes, some of which were now lying in peaces at his feet. The yells of henchmen drew closer, coming from both directions down the long corridor, forcing Ron and Kim to stand back to back in preparation for the ensuing fight.

Ron was cursing himself silently. He had hoped to start patching the widening rift between him and Kim on this mission, and instead he had already managed to attract two separate sets of henchmen. He knew this would only worsen their relationship, and got ready to face either a nasty lecture, or stony silence from Kim on their trip home.

Either one was much scarier than the red-clothed men bearing down on them.

The four henchmen from the direction the teen heroes had been traveling in charged at Kim, while the two from the other side of the corridorlooked at Ron speculatively, as though they weren't sure if they were supposed to laugh, or actually fight him.

Ron answered their unspoken question by seizing a plate off the still shaking buffet and throwing it at the nearest one's head. His aim was off, but is still struck the man's shoulder hard enough to make him back up slightly.

Both henchmen came at him then, and Ron had just time to grab a couple of saucers, sending them the way of the plate, before they were on him, his most recent projectiles having missed.

One man, more fat than muscle under his red suit, swung a meaty fist at Ron, the latter just managing to duck and not strike his head on the edge of the formerly helpful buffet.

Ron retaliated by snaking out his right foot, twisting it through the fat man's legs and tripping him, his bulk sending him to floor far harder thanthe boyhad expected.

However, while Ron was occupied with his comrade, the second henchman had gotten behind him. This man suddenly grasped Ron by his hair, at the same time pressing something cold and hard against the boy's throat.

"Don't move," the man hissed, and Ron, abundantly aware that his life depended on it, complied.

"Kim Possible!" The man's gravelly voice cut through sounds of combat, and Ron noticed Kim was on her last henchman, the others having been knocked out already. He winced, knowing what was coming.

At the sound of the man's voice Kim glanced over, still keeping her henchman's clumsy punches at bay as she did so.

"Surrender," the man continued, seeing he had her attention. Ron began to really hate him. "Or you'll have to find a new sidekick." He increased the presser on Ron's neck for emphasis, pressing harder with whatever sharp object he was holding there. Ron distractedly wondered what it was, as he couldn't see something held against his own neck, but wasn't reallyin a position to find out.

Kim was glaring daggers at both of them, and Ron wasn't sure if she was more angry at him or his captor. She was silent for several seconds, eyes darting round the room, as though searching for another way out that didn't exist. Finally she nodded, still glaring.

"All right," she said. "I'll surrender. Don't hurt him."

"Ron let out his breath silently, not wanting to increase the presser on his neck, or let his henchman know he'd been holding it. Of course he knew Kim wouldn't condemn him to death, no matter how angry at him she was, but fearbreads strange thoughts.

As Kim relaxed her guard, the henchman she'd been fighting swung his staff-like weapon at her head from behind. Ron shut his eyes as it impacted.

_I'm sorry, KP._

The next second he heard the smack of something hard hitting flesh and bone, and at the same time felt a flash of pain at the back of his skull. Light exploded behind his eyes, and he joined his partner in unconsciousness, going limp in is captor's arms.

---------------------------------------

Dun...dun...duuuuuuuuuuuuuun...

So, Like it? I read it to my brother, and he found it quite good.

Oh, I'm withdrawing my earlier statement. I will now update this story as frequently as possible, same as my others. :)

Review if you like, it makes me happy, and encourages me to update. (Hint, hint.)

See you next time!


	3. The Courage Of Ron Stoppable

Why chapter 3

Disclaimer: If Kim Possible was mine Ron and Shego would most likely be together. Alas, that is not the case.

I have started _really _liking this story! I hope you are too. :)

I'll try to keep chapters coming out, but I'm afraid the times between updates will get longer, as I start University this year. :( Please rest assured that I will _not _abandon any of my stories, and don't despair if I haven't updated in a while.

And now, enjoy the chapter!

----------------------------------------

"Smashed! Destroyed! Look at this, Shego! One of my pink flower pattern!"

Shego glanced at the piece of china in her boss's hand and shook her head in disdain.

"Shameful," she commented dryly.

"Exactly!" Drakken cradled the broken plate before setting it carefully in a bin filled with similarly patterned pieces.

"Two questions, Doc," Shego said, no longer trying to hide her disdain. Drakken looked at her, apparently hurt by her tone, and opened his mouth, but she held up a claw-gloved hand and continued. "One, what is this obsession of yours with china? It's creeping me out! And two, if you're _so _attached to your plates, why did you put them in the corridor? It's likely someone would have broken them even if the princess and her lapdog _hadn't_ come for a not-so-unexpected visit!"

"Now, now, Shego." The blue skinned mad-scientist took a nervous half-step backward. "I don't ask what your hobbies are, or what you like to do in your spare time." Shego's face tightened slightly as she thought of just what it was she did in her spare time, causing Drakken to take another step away from her. Still, he put his chin up and faced her stubbornly.

"As for your second question, I put them in the corridor because it's the only place in this lair that doesn't get destroyed by the self destruct button." Shego rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, Doc," She muttered. "Anyway, not that this isn't fascinating, which it isn't, but I'll be leaving now." Drakken looked up from his place on the floor, lower lip all but trembling, but Shego just turned and stalked down the corridor, flipping her raven hair behind her dismissively.

Though her quips had been as sharp as ever regarding the stupidity of her boss, Shego's thoughts had been focused on something other than his pink china problem.

With every beat of her heart one word throbbed in the villainess's head. _Ron…Ron…Ron…_

He was _here!_

That was all Shego could think about, which was probably the reason she had let Drakken babble about his plates for close to fifteen minutes without interruption. And now, without Drakken to distract her, she felt her pulse quicken. She felt excitement course through her veins, and had to fight the urge to do a cartwheel right there in the hallway.

She _had _to see him.

It had been almost a month since Drakken's last failed plot, and therefore since Shego had seen Ron. She felt she simply had to see him at once, and her stride quickened unconsciously. Having watched the security camera feed, she was also more irritated at little miss perfect than usual.

How could she talk to Ron that way when it was obvious he had just made a mistake? Her tone was as nasty as Shego had ever heard it and, knowing Ron, she was sure he had shrunk inside. Then there was that henchman who had threatened Ron. It had been Bill of course, he thought himself _so _smart! Because of that little stunt Kimmie was probably giving Ron still more grief.

As Shego walked swiftly down the hall, she noticed a red clad henchman bent over and sweeping the floor with a little broom, no doubt trying to disguise the fact that he wasn't doing anything constructive.

A smirk flickered across her lips, and Shego brought her foot back and administered a healthy kick to the henchman's conveniently protruding posterior. He yelped, then noticed it was her, and began to sweep faster.

This particular henchman wasn't Bill, but he looked sufficiently like him to make the kick fairly satisfying. Shego continued walking, still smiling slightly.

She would see Ron, that was all. She felt that if she didn't at least see him she'd have to do a heck of a lot more than kick someone who deserved it anyway.

And if Kimmie said something nasty and sarcastic and ended up with a black eye, well, that was her fault.

----------------------------------------

"I don't believe you, Ron! How could you let yourself get captured like that?"

Ron lowered his eyes. Chained to the wall by his arms and legs, that was all he could do. In response, Kim tutted and looked away, dismissing him.

Ron opened his mouth, about to apologize, but closed it. It wouldn't help. In this situation, he was better to just let her cool off a bit and vent some anger fighting Shego after they got loose. He missed Rufus. The poor little guy was down with a cold, and Ron had thought it best he stay at home.

Rufus never judged him.

When Kim was dating, and therefore in find-fault-with-Ron land, Rufus would comfort Ron, and let him know someone cared about him. Of course, Kim cared about him, they had been friends forever, it was just that she got caught up in other things sometimes and forgot about him.

Ron sighed. He knew he was lucky to even have her for a friend. She was pretty and popular, and had more friends than you could shake a stick at. He, on the other hand, was a loser. That was the only word for it.

And now he had proved it once again.

Ron knew he wasn't popular or liked by most people. He had come to terms with it. In fact, he was proud of the fact that he didn't care what anyone thought of him. But it did hurt when the only person whose opinion mattered behaved like all the rest.

It hurt, as it always did, when Kim treated him like a loser as well.

Ron was jerked out of his revere, and Kim out of whatever probably Josh related thoughts she was having by a key turning in the lock of their cell. The door opened and Shego strode in, lips graced by a mocking smile.

Kim and Ron exchanged a look. This was their chance.

The villainess strode across the small room, boots clicking on the cold stone floor, and stopped right in front of Kim.

"So, Kimmie," Shego almost crooned, "planning on retiring soon? I mean, if Drakken's henchmen can beat you you're clearly on your last legs."

In response to this jab, Kim actually growled, and fought with her restraints. _No, KP, _Ron thought. _We have to stay calm if we're to get out of this._

"Well, what about you, Shego?" Kim snarled. "I notice you weren't anywhere to by found when there was fighting going on. Afraid the henchmen would make you look bad?"

Smack!

Kim's head snapped sideways from the slap, and Shego backed up a bit, looking satisfied.

"Stop it, Shego!" Ron's voice shook with rage. If his temper had been a meter, it would read 'danger.' Shego came over to him then, so close their faces were almost touching.

"What's the matter, sidekick?" she asked softly. "Don't like what I'm doing to your little mistress?"

"You seem awfully brave to be slapping bound prisoners," Ron responded hotly. At the back of his mind a little voice informed him his corpse was going to decorate the walls, but he didn't care. Nobody did that to Kim.

"And what are you going to do about it?" Shego's voice was still mocking, but she seemed slightly intrigued as well. "Gonna fight me yourself?"

Ron hesitated for a moment, but only a moment. This was for Kim. He brought his face closer to Shego's until they were nose to nose.

"Bring it," he breathed.

----------------------------------------

Oh the suspense!

Nobody hate me for leaving it there, okay? I couldn't help it. The good news about this is that I'm eager to see what happens next as well, so chapter 4 will hopefully be fairly soon in coming. Just keep in mind I will be in University. Blech!

So, tell me what you think of this chapter. Feedback keeps me happy and in a writing mood. ;)

See you soon!


	4. This Hurts Me More Than It Hurts You

Disclaimer: CURSE THE MOUSE! Ahem...Kim Possible is not mine.

Thank you SO much to everyone who reviewed! You are all awesome and should give yourselves a pat on the back for brightening my day. :)

This chapter is dedicated to Data Seeker for all the messages he/she sent me. Without him/her getting me motivated to write this chapter wouldn't be out so soon.

**Attention! **I, Deyinel, have finally found a better name for this story and have decided to re-name it. In case you didn't notice the change yet the new name is: _(dun dun dun duuuuuuuun...) _**"Loving You Behind Closed Doors."** Any input on how you like the new name will be appreciated, but I think it's pretty good. :)

Poor Shego's in a dilemma, isn't she? Still, leaving it like that satisfied my muse, at least temporarily. Curse University! It's very interesting, but it will make updating a bit of a problem. Just remember that I will **never** abandon this story.

The POV in this chapter switches quite a bit between Ron and Shego. When it changes I have dividers, and it's pretty easy to tell who's it is. Anyway, I like the effect, but send me your input and let me know how it works.

And now, welcome to chapter 4 of "Loving You Behind Closed Doors!" Man, I like that title. ;)

-------------------------------------------

"Ron, you idiot!" Kim almost shrieked. "You're going to get yourself killed!"She was ignored.

"Very well," Shego said, looking only at Ron. His face was set, brown eyes like frosted rock. When she asked if he wanted to fight her, she had been of two minds. On the one hand, she had hoped he'd say no, so she wouldn't have to hurt him. However, another part of her had been delighted by this new-found backbone of his. It was admirable, even if it _was _in defense of Possible.

And speaking of Possible, that girl was currently looking like she wanted to punch her sidekick across the room. _She has no idea how lucky she is, _Shego mused. She felt her heart quicken as she looked at Ron, still bravely glaring, though he would almost certainly end up as a blond pancake. Or so he thought.

The villainess nodded, and fired twin blasts of plasma at the shackles on Ron's feet, then his hands. Freed, he fell to his knees before rising and dusting himself off for several seconds longer than seemed necessary.

"Let's discuss terms," Shego said.

-------------------------------------------

Terms? What was this, a wrestling match? _Though that would be pretty cool, _Ron thought.

Shego's casual incineration of his chains had frightened him more than he wanted her to see. That was partly why he had spent so long ridding himself of nonexistent dust after rising.

He wasn't sure what point he was trying to prove by getting himself beaten up, but he did know nobody could treat Kim that way, not while he was there to stop it.

Or try and get his head beaten in.

Anyway, Shego had said 'terms.' if that meant what he thought it did...

"What terms?" he asked. Shego smiled.

"How's this," she said. "If you win you and the Princess can go free, and we'll let you turn us in to your pathetic police."

"And if you win?"

"I'll still let Kimmie go," Shego assured him. "Only this time we keep the nano-cuboid...that thing we stole." Ron nodded. "And you get to stay here as a hostage in case she tries to come back," the villainess finished, almost grinning now. Ron gulped; Kim would kill him.

But she'd at least be free and able to save the day as usual.

"All right."

-------------------------------------------

The fight would take place in one of the places Drakken generally used to store large pieces of machinery. An aria of twenty feet square was cleared in the center by several henchmen and marked with rows of cinder blocks.

The mad scientist himself had overseen this operation in order to make certain none of his other treasures were brutally destroyed.

He had, however, been delighted that Shego was going to fight 'the buffoon' and told her to 'give him something to remember.' In answer to this she had grinned smugly with an almost glazed look in her eyes, and when Drakken asked what was amusing she told him to go build a bridge and jump off.

So he left her alone after that, just in case she decided to help him follow her suggestion. You could never tell with Shego.

Once the cinder blocks were in place Shego sent two henchmen to get Ron. She would have gone herself, except she was afraid she might break down and try to get him to call off the fight, or beat the stuffing out of Possible, neither of which were likely to improve the Stoppable situation. So instead she merely sat on the edge of one of the cinder blocks and filed the claws on her gloves, trying to look board.

Hearing the annoying _whoosh_ of one of the lair's doors, Shego glanced up, attempting to appear calm, even disdainful if she could manage it. Her hand belied her, glowing with green fire. It sank into the block she was sitting on as though it were soft butter and cracked it.

He was here.

-------------------------------------------

When the henchmen came to take him, Ron was almost relieved. Kim had been making her feelings concerning the impending fight abundantly clear.

_Though perhaps it was good in a way_, Ron mused somewhere at the back of his mind. Mostly he was stretched almost to breaking point. There was no room for fear. He needed desperately to vent some anger, and this time it wasn't just because of Shego's treatment of Kim.

He loved Kim. He loved her with all his heart, but sometimes, namely when she was dating someone, he turned into some kind of complete bumbling idiot. Not to say that he didn't mess things up occasionally, okay, a fair amount, but it was never his intention.

He only wanted to help her.

Ron found that he was in a huge hanger of some kind. He noticed this suddenly, as though he had arrived there that very instant through a magic portal. Stacks of cinder blocks were arranged to make a rough square with an opening in one side. It reminded him uncomfortably of a boxing ring, though with cinder blocks instead of ropes and posts.

No prizes for guessing what that was for.

Shego sat on one of the blocks at the other side of the make-shift fighting ring, features impassive, but tension in every fiber of her being. She rose as he and his escorts entered the room. Leaping from her perch, she strode to the center of the cinder block square and stood waiting.

The three henchmen, all bulky and beer bellied, pushed Ron into the ring. It was so sudden and unexpected, the shove caused Ron to lose his footing and land in a sprawled heap in front of his challenger, who snorted disdainfully.

"Graceful, aren't we?"

For some reason Shego's comment made Ron angry, instead of embarrassed like it normally would have. Maybe it was because he had already had to deal with _far _too much abuse already today and just couldn't take one ounce more.

In any case, the blond teen rose in one fluid motion, then slipped into a fighting stance. His face was completely expressionless, but his brown eyes were so cold they burned. Shego's smirk faded and she glanced around, slightly taken aback. Then, catching site of a score of eagerly watching henchmen who had congregated around the ring she shook her head. Green flame burst from her clenched hands, and charged her blond opponent.

-------------------------------------------

Shego's plan was simple: bang Ron up a bit, perhaps knock him out, then kick Kimmy out and...well, she hadn't really thought what would happen next, but she was sure she could just cross that bridge when she came to it. Her main idea was to get him away from the Princess, which she was certain would do herself and him good in the long run.

However, Ron's face had upset her a little. Okay, a fair amount. _Fine, _it took all her extensive emotional training not to betray herself by a) running to him and asking what was wrong and who she should kill, or b) running away and hiding under her bed.

This was _not _the Ron she knew.

On charging the villainess was met by a faint on Ron's part, then a swift blow to her shoulder she just barely dodged. She responded with a series of quick punches to the blond's upper body. They were real punches, unlike the ones she had been planning to use against him originally. Out of these he dodged all but one.

The punch she managed to land drove her quarry back a pace, but he recovered almost immediately came back at her, leaping in the air and kicking out with his legs. Shego parried his kicks with glowing hands.

As they worked their way across the floor Shego realized she had to use all her skill in order to land any blows on Ron at all. In this fight she was in much closer proximity to him than she usually was with Kimmy. The red-head, as well as herself, preferred to dart in and out of the fight. Here, however, Ron was making sure they were very near to each other at all times, and if one of them was driven backwards by an attack he made haste to bridge the gap. He would get in close to her and try to impede her movements with his own.

Gradually, however, Shego noticed his attacks were getting less damaging, his movements slower and he was dodging fewer of her punches. She caught a glimpse of his face as one of her fists struck his chest hard and his head jerked up, bangs flying. Sweat stood out on his pale forehead and his eyes were soft brown again; frightened, still with some determination, but also a sense of hopelessness. One was half shut, bruised by a blow she didn't even remember landing. There was no sign of the terrible cold anger she had seen at the beginning of the fight.

They were _his _eyes.

Whatever had caused the pure fury she had felt from the sidekick before had clearly been used up and he was himself again. It was a relief, but also unfortunate. When she had been fighting him before, Shego was simply fighting. His unexpected expertise had meant she had to completely focus on attacking and blocking. There was no room for anything else.

Now, however, as she saw the expression on Ron's face, Shego felt her worries about hurting him rise again in her mind. She had to finish this.

Shego delivered a kick to his midsection, which made him grunt, body unconsciously hunching over slightly, she became aware that the watching henchmen were cheering. Oh, she was going to hurt some people later. But first things first.

Taking advantage of the opening Ron had left when he curled around his injury, Shego leaped and kicked at his left leg. The blond went down hard, landing on his side on the corrugated metal. Shego approached him slowly. He did not move. Oh no! What if he had landed on a nail and it had hit the bruise on his head from when he was knocked out before, and that had given him brain damage or something?

Shego was vaguely aware that the copious henchmen watching were silent, but they didn't matter right now. She tried to look uncaring, but could just barely prevent her gloved hands from shaking as she leaned over Ron's prone form.

Suddenly his eyes snapped open and a black gloved hand grasped her green one. The next thing she knew he had jerked on her arm hard, then released, sending her flying over him. Shego just managed not to send her own head smashing into the floor, and as it was the best she could do was twist herself so her hands and knees took the weight as she landed.

"Oof," the villainess groaned, though she couldn't help being impressed. _I've got to remember _that _move, _she though distractedly, rising and diving at her now upright opponent.

-------------------------------------------

Ron was up, but that was about it. His hands and knees were shaking uncontrollably and his vision was swimming. He couldn't win this fight. But then, he had known that in the cell when he had agreed originally. And at least he hadn't made a _complete_ fool out of himself; Shego actually had bruises, though he couldn't remember inflicting any of them. _Great, _his unfocused mind thought darkly. _The one time I apparently fight well I can't even remember it._ _And Kim didn't see it. _

A green and black blur caught his eye, but before his muddled mind could figure out what it was his head smacked the _very _hard floor for the second time in as many minutes.

"Yield," Shego whispered in his ear, and he realized, through the painful lights in front of his eyes that she had his throat on one of her clawed hands. _Yield? Oh, right, the fight. Do people still say yield? _Ron wondered. Well, if Shego said it it didn't matter if 'people' did, because nobody would tell her otherwise.

"Yes." The word was low, but even so, it took the last of his strength with it as it fled from his mouth. He closed his eyes and let his throbbing head sink back onto the floor. _Kim, I hope you're happy with Josh. _

He had no reason to believe he would ever see his home again, but right now it was too much work to feel worry or fear. There would be plenty of time for that later.

-------------------------------------------

Well, there you have it! This chapter took me simply ages, because this was my first fight scene, and I'm still not sure how good it is. Please let me know if it needed more description or anything.

I hope the next chapter will be up fairly soon, but it ain't gonna happen before Hallowe'en.

So thanks for reading, and please review. The more you bug me the faster I will update. Wait! Dang, shouldn't have told them that.


	5. Doing The Right Thing Is Hard

Loving You Behind Closed Doors chap 5

**Disclaimer:** I have a way for Ron and Shego to be together! First we need to round up some torches, some pitchforks and some angry villagers/Rongo fans. Then we march to the Disney studios and take them over! We shall rule, and can make shows with whatever parings we want! It's perfect! So spread the word! Oh, and before I forget, until this wonderful and bright future comes to pass I don't own Kim Possible. But that soon will change. Oh, yes! That will **change!**

I'm really sorry for the long silence, and the worst is I really don't have a good excuse except that the writer's block sat on this story and would not get off. I therefore gave it a bit of a break and tried to brainstorm and I've only just gotten that block moved. Anyway, this author's note is going to be long enough as it is, so I'll just go right to this thing.

_The following was posted in all my stories._

**REVIEWERS, PLEASE READ:** Thanks so much to my reviewers! All the help and advice you give is wonderful. I really feel that you are helping me improve my writing style and spelling, though I know I'm still not great at the latter. The positive feedback is also awesome. It's a fantastic feeling to open a review and find that the person loved your story and wants to kill you if you don't update soon, lol. But seriously, without you guys to encourage me I would probably still update, but I wouldn't know whether people liked my story or not, and for what reasons. You, the reviewers, really aren't appreciated enough for what you do. It only takes a few minutes of your time and may seem like little to you, but just know that every review I get, whether it gives me helpful advice, update entreaties, or just tells me I'm doing a good job raises my spirits and lets me know there are people out there who like my story, even if I make mistakes. Remember, it's the little things in life that count. Every time you take a moment to do something for someone shows them you care. So thank you, and know that you are appreciated, for where would the authors be without the reviewers? (Very lonely.)

And now enjoy the long awaited chapter five!

------------------------------------------

Shego backed up, relaxing, and Ron felt the footfalls of several henchmen approaching. His arms were seized and he was dragged to his feet. The beaten teen tried to stand erect, but was obliged to lean on his captors slightly. What was the point of trying to be strong anyway?

He had failed.

He had once again proved everyone at the top of the foodchain right; he was a loser.

And he had failed Kim.

But strangely, with this admission of his own worthlessness came strength. There was no one but him. He didn't know if Kim would even want to associate with him after she had rescued him, there was no doubt in his mind that she would be able to, and why should she want to spend time with him?

He was a loser. He was lucky she had risked her station being his friend for as long as she had, or maybe unlucky. If he had never known her he wouldn't miss her. He was a loser and she deserved better than him. But this loser would _not _give up.

With an effort Ron straitened his bruised spine, stiffening in the henchmen's grasp just enough so that he was no longer slumping in their arms. He steeled himself for the derogatory comments he was sure would come his way from Shego, but he was surprised to receive no insults at all.

"Lock the sidekick up," Shego ordered, but without her usual fire. She sounded tired more than anything and as Ron was marched from the room he saw her sink down onto a cinder block as though she had lost instead of won.

------------------------------------------

Kim was in a foul mood.

There were several reasons for this. First of all, her arms were getting very tired and her wrists sore from the shackles. Nothing had gone right so far today, and to top it all if she didn't get back from this mission soon she would be late for the date she had with Josh who happened to be _the _coolest and most unattainable boy in school.

And now Ron was trying to play the hero.

Not to mention the fact that this cell was simply filthy.

The sound of a key turning in the lock brought the teen hero out of her black fuming and she tensed, ready for action.

"I don't get it," a slow, stupid sounding voice whined through the door. It sounded like a henchman. "All I did was laugh a bit about the look on that little worm's face when he got beat, and she goes and does _this _to me. Look at this, Fred!" A gasp. The key rattling stopped.

"Jease, Rich." Another voice, softer, but sounding no more intelligent than the first one. "That looks really bad, mate," the new voice said. "Have you…"

"Hey!" Kim interrupted, rapidly losing what little patience she still had. "Are you going to come in or am I expected to go out and get you?"

The voices were instantly silent. Then the key rattling resumed, the rusty lock gave with a moan of annoyance, and the door opened. Surprisingly, it didn't creak as it was pushed wide, although it did scrape the ground slightly. Two figures in red peered through the opening, and then the henchmen pushed the door fully open and walked into the cell.

One was fat and one was thin, Kim saw. She noticed something dark on the fat one's arm and, when she looked more closely, she saw that half his suit's sleeve had been burned away, and the flesh underneath was an angry red and blistered. _The 'she' they were talking about must have been Shego_, Kim decided. _But who was 'he'? Ron?_

"We're supposed to tell you, Kim Possible," said Rich, the fat henchman importantly. "That your sidekick was defeated, so we're here to take you off the premiseses."

"Premises," Fred corrected his rotund companion.

Kim smirked inwardly. These two dimwits would be easy to handle, and then she could save Ron and get back on track with the mission. She decided to be charitable and not beat Ron up mentally about the idiocy of challenging Shego, since the beating he had gotten had no doubt been very unpleasant and they really were no worse off.

The henchmen approached and she prepared to lash out the second one of her hands was freed, but instead the skinny man brought a hand from behind his back. He was holding a squirt bottle of some kind, and before Kim realized what he was about he sprayed some kind of mist directly into her face.

The sleeping gas was fast acting. Kim's head slumped as blackness clamed her mind.

Once they were certain she was out the henchmen went about the task of unlocking the red head's manacles.

"Say, Rich," Fred addressed his friend as they lowered the teen hero onto a dolly. "You should really put some ointment on that burn of yours. Do you want to borrow some of mine?"

"Nah." Rich pushed the loaded dolly out of the cell as the smaller man held the door for him. "I've got an Aloe Vera plant in my room; I'll just slather it all over my arm. Works wonders."

"Oh, yeah," Fred agreed wholeheartedly. "That stuff is awesome!"

------------------------------------------

Shego didn't remember exactly when she started lo…really caring for Ron.

She did remember when she realized he wasn't an idiot. The first few times she had seen him, when he and Kimmie foiled some of Drakken's plots, he really had seemed like 'the buffoon.' She had wondered why he was even there. All he seemed to do was scream, run and make bad jokes.

But somehow, despite his apparent uselessness, the tasks Kim set for him always got accomplished; the death ray would explode, the device was retrieved, Drakken wound up knocked out. And after watching him for a while Shego realized it wasn't that he was stupid, he was just really good at acting like it. Why? She still wasn't sure, although it might have something to do with Possible.

After she figured out what was going on she had started watching him, and the more she saw the more impressed she became. There was great strength and intelligence hidden behind those freckles and under that unruly thatch of hair, and yet there was such a wealth of gentle kindness to him.

And then of course there was his appearance. Though Shego doubted she would ever admit it she loved his crazy freckles, wild hair and outsize ears.

She sighed.

Her plan hadn't worked out, or rather; it had worked out, but hadn't been the answer. She had succeeded in getting rid of the princess, (whoop-de-do for her), but how had it helped? Ron probably hated her, and even if he didn't all she had done was bring his already lacking self esteem to an all-time low.

She had been selfish, thinking only of her own needs in doing this to Ron. How could she lord it over Possible when she acted like this? When you loved someone you were supposed to think about them, not yourself.

Which was why she was currently standing nervously outside Ron's cell.

Taking a deep breath, the green skinned villainess fingered the skeleton key in her hand for a moment, then slipped it into the door lock and turned it.

She had to make things right, and this was the only way.

------------------------------------------

Ron stiffened slightly, the sound of the key in the lock breaking him out of an endless stream of faulty escape plans, and he drew back slightly into a corner as the door was pushed wide, revealing Shego's granite-like features.

"What do you want?" the boy asked uneasily. Just because he wasn't going to give up didn't mean he had lost any of the fear he harbored for his beautiful but deadly captor.

"Come with me, sidekick," Shego said in a voice that brooked no argument, and Ron offered no protest as he was ushered out of the door; she would probably have blasted him right there if he questioned her.

They walked through many corridors, most shining with chromium walls and cold, bright lights overhead, but a few that looked like the passages of a dungeon in _Fortress_. No henchmen were in site anywhere for, unbeknownst to Ron they were staying as far away from Shego as possible; there was no way of telling what would set her off lately. Ron had no clue what awaited him at the end of their little hike, and once put his hand in the pocket of his cargo pants, searching for the comforting warmth of Rufus and feeling a pang when he remembered he was alone.

Finally they stopped before a plain, steel door. Shego inserted a large, intricate key into the lock, and turned the handle after hearing the clicking of the tumblers, which seemed loud in the silence all around them. The door opened, and Ron looked out onto a world of pastel splendor. The sun was setting behind the mountains and the sky was painted in a glorious swirl of orange, purple, pink and pale dove gray.

Ron turned uncertainly to look at his companion, than stared, transfixed as he saw a single tear, kissed pink by the glowing sky, wander slowly down Shego's cold cheek as she watched the sunset.

She started then, suddenly becoming aware of his eyes, and swiftly brushed a black gloved hand over her cheek, effectively removing the evidence. She turned to him in one stiff move.

"You're free," Shego said.

"W-What?" Of all the things he'd imagined her saying this wasn't one of them.

"I said you're free, Stoppable, I'm letting you go."

"Why would you do that?"

"That's none of your business." Her face was hard, revealing nothing, but he looked into her large, green eyes and saw a sorrow so deep it sent a shiver running down his spine. "I'm letting you go," she snapped again. "That's all you need to know. Now get out here before Drakken comes or I change my mind!" Ron almost said no, that it could be a trap, but somehow, he knew it wasn't.

"Thanks," he said softly. Shego closed her eyes.

"Just leave, Ron," she said. And he spared her only one last look before going through the door and running swiftly down the winding road from the lair under the darkening heavens.

Shego watched him go, getting smaller and more indistinct as the light failed. When she finally lost sight of him the young woman turned heavily and headed back into the depths of the lair.

She did not see the dark figure lurking in one of the branching corridors off the main rout she had taken. The figure had watched the exchange between her and Ron with great interest and watched her now with grin of pure evil.

------------------------------------------

And there you have chapter five! Who is the dark figure and will he be a threat? You'll find out next time, which I hope will have a shorter waiting period than you suffered through for this chapter.

Please R&R, everyone loves to get mail!


	6. An Unexpected Offer

Loving You Behind Closed Doors chapter 6

Disclaimer: Who owns Kim Possible? NOT ME!

I am _so_ **so **sorry I haven't updated in so long! I won't bore you with a long author note this time, just enjoy the chapter.

---------------------------------------------------

"I know, Josh. I'm sorry….No, I am!...There's nothing I can do about it I….No I can't still go with you….Because Drakken could act at any time. When he progresses to the 'capture Ron' stage he's usually pretty close to attacking and I have to stay here in case he does….I know, I….I'm sorry….No, you know I want to, I've been looking forward to it all week, I just….Well I can't! I'll just have to call you when all this is over….Okay, bye."

_Click_, the line went dead.

Kim stared at the phone in her hand. Angrily she slammed it back into its cradle on the table by her bed.

"Kimmie-cub! Supper time!" The teen heroine got slowly to her feet and headed morosely for the door.

Ron had better be in a lot of trouble.

---------------------------------------------------

In his room across town Josh tossed his cordless phone onto his bed and ran a hand through his bleached hair. Two tickets to the rock concert wasted, not to mention his evening ruined, all because Kim couldn't be satisfied with babysitting like any normal girl.

It was really too bad for Stoppable, getting captured and all, but he had really brought this on himself trying to play the hero without any moves. And the way he followed after Kim all the time as if she wasn't completely out of that loser's league. At least Josh was under no illusions that he was in any danger of losing Kim that way.

It was just so galling to be set up. He was _Josh Mankey_. Girls should be lining up to go out with him; actually they did line up to go out with him, though they certainly never imagined that he knew about that. Kim was the only girl in school who had ever set him up like this and it never ceased to annoy him.

Well, at least his evening didn't have to be totally destroyed. He still had the tickets and he _was_ the most popular boy in school after all. Kim was a definite bust for now. He wondered what Bonnie was doing.

Josh reached for the phone again.

---------------------------------------------------

Shego sat hunched at the foot of her bed; her dark green bathrobe wrapped around her and her hands lying limply in her lap. She did not move; what would she do if she did? She did not speak; what was there to say that she had not already said? She did not cry; what was the point of tears?

There had only been one other time in her life when she had felt more desolate than this…

_Crack!_

Shego started and swung to face the window through which she could now hear a faint scraping and rustling. Fury whirled through her like a storm and left her shaking. A spy! Someone was spying on her, had probably seen her grief and pain. With an animalistic snarl the villainess lit her hands and started toward the window. Whoever it was would not live to make use of what he'd seen.

"Hey…Shego?"

That voice.

The shock was so intense Shego even forgot to extinguish her flaming hands and merely gaped at the open window. As she stared his head popped up above the sill, mouth twitching into a bazaar and comforting mix of infectious joy and puzzlement and one hand clapped firmly over his eyes.

"Shego?" he said again. "Can I look? Are you decent?" A gasp. "I mean dressed decent, _dressed_ decent! I don't mean decent like decent decent. Not that you're not that kind of decent too, of course….Don't fry me!"

Shego burst out giggling helplessly, joyfully, just as though she had not spent the day on a destructive emotional roller coaster. Only Ron could have totally ruined the romantic window entry and at the same time made it so she didn't care that it was ruined.

"I'm dressed Ron," she told him.

"Whew!" Ron removed his hand from his eyes and immediately latched onto the windowsill with it. In retrospect he probably should have used his left hand to hold on since it was stronger, and covered his eyes with his right. Ah the powers of hindsight.

By the time he raised his eyes to meet hers Shego had schooled her face to pleasant indifference. Her heart was straining in her breast as though it were trying to get as close as possible to Ron, but she hadn't lived with her secret for so long to stop guarding it now. Instead she crossed to the window at a carefully measured pace and proffered a hand to the dangling boy.

To his credit, Ron only hesitated for a second before taking her hand and allowing himself to be helped through the window. As soon as he was standing inside Ron seemed to lose his nerve and stood quietly examining the black and green swirl pattern on the carpet.

"Why did you come back, Ron?" The villainess's voice was almost completely devoid of emotion. It had to be. She could feel barriers she had spent years erecting under the public eye starting to tremble. Sarcasm and anger was beyond her, and indeed she would not have used them in any case.

The very last thing she wanted to do was scare Ron away.

And there was a large part of her, larger that she had known until this moment, that was still and always had been a hopeless romantic. She did not quite let herself believe that there was even a chance for…what she wished for, and yet he was here, where she had never looked for him.

"I told you to leave, I let you go." Now the emotion rushed back unalterably like an incoming tide. She was not quite trembling with something which sounded like rage in her voice, but tasted of frost as it passed over her tongue. She said again "Why did you come back?"

At last he looked up, eyes dark brown pools of puzzlement. "I had to know. There's something going on here and I need to know what it is. Why did you call me by my name? And…why did you let me go? I think…" He paused, a trickle of determination finding its way into his voice and eyes which managed stealthily to keep him standing before her when all he wanted to do was retreat. "I think it's important. And I'm not leaving until I find out what's going on or you lock me back up in my cell."

It seemed suddenly to Shego as though he was almost suffocatingly close to her, although they were separated by at least three feet. She felt an urge to back away from his terrible innocence. How dare he stand there and offer her a chance to tell him all that she desired, a chance to make her dream come true?

She said, as calmly as she could manage, "Some things, even important things, are better left alone. Sometimes you don't really want to know."

"I _have_ to know," he repeated.

And suddenly, so did she. She stood there, in a room as marked to her by the amount of frustration, rage and hopeless tears it held as by the black and green color scheme that dripped from every surface. She stood and felt trapped by the secrets she had carried by herself for so long. So many secrets. And she wanted, more than anything, to end it all.

She did not give herself time to think, but took two swift steps forward until she stood directly in front of him. Then, placing her gloved hands on his shoulders she drew him close and leant toward him until her lips just barely touched his.

It was not quite a kiss, having all of the emotion and none of the substance, and it seemed to last for an eternity. She sensed their noses next to each other, the barest suggestion of the breath he was not quite holding and the flutter of his lashes as he closed his terrible eyes. She knew he would pull away an instant before he did and took her hands from his shoulders as though to give him leave.

He backed up a little, then paused, a frightened deer frozen before flight. She felt she must speak or he would be gone.

"Now you know," she said quietly.

---------------------------------------------------

Ron's head was a whirlwind of confusion; thoughts and feelings spinning through him like bits of captured furniture to be set down who knew where. He opened his mouth, though he had no idea what he would say, but Shego had begun speaking again.

"I love you, Ron. I think I've loved you for years, ever since I started noticing _you_, not what the world sees of you. The good, strong, patient person hiding behind the mask of a fool." She paused for a second, and then hurried on as though she were afraid he would fade away without her voice holding him together. She might just be right. "I goaded you into having that fight with me so I could get you alone and tell you….I was wrong, and that's why I let you go. You're the strongest, most wonderful person I know Ron, and I'm sorry."

Ron felt himself shrinking as she spoke relentlessly on, and she had been correct before; he wished he hadn't found out. Because he didn't love her. Not at all. She was a villain, and all he knew about her was what he saw from her fights or what he was told by Wade and Dr. Director. It was not in Ron Stoppable's nature to hate, but when he saw her fighting Kim, or verbally assaulting her he came very close to hating the villainess.

And here she was pouring her heart out to him and what could he say? He didn't want to hurt her, whatever she had done.

"I'm sorry, Shego," he whispered, almost ashamed of the words coming out of his mouth in light of her confession. "I don't love you, I don't even know you, except as someone who tries to take over the world and hurts KP. And I think…I already love someone."

Her eyes had gone dull with acceptance even before he spoke. Now she gave a smile to make dry ice shiver.

"I know," she said.

And it could have ended there. He could have left, gone home and tried to forget about her. He sensed she expected nothing else. But there was some part of him, the part which had brought him back in the first place, that wouldn't accept that. There was a part of him that still wanted to _know_.

"I don't know you Shego," he said again. "But I think I'd like to." She looked at him then, out of eyes that did not want to deal with new hope. He moved closer to her again and held out one hand, palm up, open. "I'd like to be your friend," he said.

---------------------------------------------------

She hadn't expected it, not at all, and she wasn't sure what to feel. Her secret was gone, told, over with, and in its place was the dull emptiness of something unfulfilled. But there he stood, he who had every right to walk out of the room right now and never think of her again.

And he was offering to be her friend.

Deep in the emptiness she felt an almost imperceptible warmth form and begin to grow. She still felt shattered and desolate, and would probably spend the night crying after Ron left, but there was hope here, and something else. He was offering her a purpose and a future, and perhaps she still had a chance for love to blossom.

But right now, all that mattered was that he still know exactly the right thing to say, the only thing to say.

"I'd like that," she said shakily, and holding out her hand, she placed it in his.

---------------------------------------------------

And that is it. I certainly hope I didn't disappoint; you guys deserve a good chapter after waiting for so long.

I'm taking Shego's character in rather a different direction from what I see in most Rongo stories and I rather like it, but please tell me what you think.

And I would love it if you would review. Reviews will cheer me up when I'm plowing through the homework I put off to finish this update. ;)

Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!


	7. Alone And Lonely

LYBCD chap 7

**Disclaimer:** You all must know the drill at this point. Do I _look_ like an abnormally large mouse with red shorts? (Don't answer that Sideos, if you're reading this…) I thought not. I don't own Kim Possible.

Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed. Your continued (and new) support means so much to me, and every review I see brightens my day!

* * *

This chapter is dedicated to my mum, my dad and my brother Peter, who are currently enjoying the lovely experience of Mexico and who I miss terribly already.

* * *

So here is chapter seven. Read, enjoy, and review if you feel like it. I am always eager to hear what you think.

* * *

When Ron opened the door to his room he was met by a wild, hairless ball of joy. 

"Rufus!" the blond exclaimed, catching his airborne pet with difficulty. "What are you doing up?"

"Huhn…worried." Rufus cuddled into his owner's hands, pressing his head into Ron's jersey in greeting.

"Oh. I'm sorry buddy," Ron said sheepishly. The events of the last few hours had completely made him forget that he'd been captured and that people would be worried about him. "How are you feeling, anyway?" Ron continued, flopping down into his chair and studying his pet under the light of his desk lamp.

"Notgood. Sorry." It was true. Rufus' pink skin was still pail, his forehead beaded with sweat. Ron gently stroked his pet with one finger, than crossed to his bed, laying the mole-rat on the pillow and covering him with a small blanket.

"You shouldn't exert yourself like that, little guy," Ron crooned as he continued stroking. "You should get some sleep now, k?"

"Nu-uh," his pet protested. "Whathappen?"

"Well…" Ron sat back a little, the events of the night still playing through his head in a confusing jumble. "I really don't know where to begin."

"Hic-captured," Rufus prompted.

"Yes," Ron said softly. He had to sort everything out, so he might as well do it with Rufus. Perhaps the experiences would be less confusing then. "Kim and I were captured. Then Shego came into our cell and there was a…" He paused. "Confrontation." When Rufus looked quizzically at him, Ron said "It ended with Shego challenging me to fight her."

"Hic-whyfight?" That was the question, wasn't it?"

"Well…" Ron trailed off as Shego's words seemed to spiral through his mind. _"I goaded you into having that fight with me so I could get you alone and tell you…" _"I'm not really sure," he said to Rufus. Ordinarily, Ron told his pet everything, but somehow he didn't want to share this with anyone, not yet. He didn't want to see Rufus' surprise and disgust when he heard about Shego's feelings toward his human. And Ron didn't want people thinking about her that way, not after she had opened herself to him like that.

Not after he thought about her having feelings too.

"I did pretty well in the fight I think," Ron continued after a moment. "But…I'm not sure, really, because I was really angry. More angry than…" He trailed off, while his pet looked at him enquiringly. "I was kind of in a haze, and it's all kind of blurry until I came out of it. Kinda funny, huh buddy?" he addressed Rufus, tone lightning. "The only time I actually do well in a fight against Shego I can't even remember it."

Rufus chirruped in agreement, glad to see that his human's black mood seemed to be lifting.

"But Shego eventually beat me, of course. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you something." Ron leant closer conspiratorially. "Shego had challenged me to fight her. She said she and Drakken would give themselves up if I won, and if she won, she'd let KP go and keep me as a hostage…hey!" This last was directed at Rufus, who had begun growling with a sound like marbles grinding together. Ron reached out a hand in an attempt to mollify his pet.

"It really wasn't like that, buddy," he explained. "It wasn't like we had some kind of escape plan, or anything. I knew I'd lose, but she was insulting KP and, well, I just _couldn't_ stand there and do nothing!" _KP comes first. She always has._

Rufus was still bristling, turned away and growling under his breath. Ron sighed.

"You have to understand Rufus," he said quietly. "I know it was a stupid thing to do, but hey, that's what I do, right?" A louder growl.

Ron watched disconsolately as his pet pulled away and crawled around behind his pillow to sulk. He clenched his hand until he could feel the painful pressure of his nails biting into the soft skin of his palms. Then, slowly he opened the tight knot of his fingers. Four small, white crescents were embedded in his skin. As he watched they slowly faded, the pain in his hand fading, but alleviating none of that in his heart and mind.

_Maybe I'll call Kim_, he thought, somewhere at the back of his mind, _tell her I'm all right_. But he didn't move. His enthusiasm had completely evaporated, and now he felt only empty. Kim was probably out with Josh anyway.

"I don't know, Rufus." Ron's voice was soft and gentle, the way you might speak when reproaching yourself. Was he talking to his pet, or to himself? "I don't want to be stupid. I don't try to be. But I always seem to mess up everything." He studied his hands again, big, clumsy, empty. "And I can't stop. It's not as if anyone expects anything more from me. Even KP really, she…"

He trailed off. Words were so inadequate. Deep inside he could feel a burning lump that had once been his heart. It smoldered in his chest, burning his lungs, scorching his flesh as he sat there.

Alone, and lonely.

Shego.

"_I think I've loved you for years, ever since I started noticing _you_, not what the world sees of you. The good, strong, patient person hiding behind the mask of a fool."_

He shook his head. Why had she said that? He wasn't hiding who he really was. What you saw was what you got, unfortunately. Okay, so maybe once or twice he had…

But that wasn't important right now.

Shego hadn't lied. He _knew_ she hadn't lied. But then, maybe she was confused or something; maybe she like liked him a little bit, and that had clouded her judgment about him. Ron couldn't imagine someone like Shego being with anyone who was anything short of incredible, so maybe she had exaggerated his 'skills' in her mind.

Why was this thought not comforting?

"_You're the strongest, most wonderful person I know Ron, and I'm sorry."_

Ron wanted to scream. He wanted to rip things up, tear them, break them and smash them until fragments slashed the air and stuck in his thick blue carpet. Right now, right at this moment, he wanted to grab his desk lamp and throw it through his innocent windowpane, or stab his mattress full of holes.

And he didn't even know why.

But instead, Ron rose from where he sat slumped on the edge of his unmade bed, and crossed to his vanity. He turned so that his back was to the mirror, than slowly eased his jersey over his shoulders and head. There were several new bruises, turning dark and muddy now, as well as some small-to-larger scrapes on his chest and back, and one whole shoulder was turning dismal purple. One knee throbbed in time to his heartbeat, as did his tailbone and left thigh, but he didn't remove his pants yet.

Opening his top drawer, Ron pawed through underwear and socks until his fingers found the familiar red tube. Still half full. Good. Ron removed the top and, squeezing the white cream onto his other hand, began gently rubbing it into the worst of his bruises, as well as the singing soreness around his right eye, which must look truly spectacular from the way it felt. Next he removed his pants and again doctored the larger injuries, leaving small grazes and bruises alone.

He felt calmer now. Though his wounds throbbed more then ever in protest against the attention, the action of rubbing in the cream was a familiar and soothing one. Finished, Ron replaced the cap on the tube and stored it back in the drawer. Arnica was hard to find, and getting ahold of it wasn't made any easier by the fact that his mum didn't 'believe' in herbal remedies.

But now that he was finished, Ron didn't quite know what to do. It was late, past midnight he knew, but he wasn't tired. Or maybe he was. Maybe he was bone weary, exhausted. But this wasn't the kind of exhaustion that could be solved by sleeping.

_"I'd like to be your friend."_

He wasn't even certain why he had said it. It had…seemed like the right thing to do at the time, and he'd had to do something. And now…he wasn't adverse. For some reason the prospect of getting to know Shego, of being her friend, seemed perfectly all right. This _was_ Kim's arch nemesis, but she was also a person, and a person in need of help, even if it _was_ only help from him.

Kim would be furious, she'd never let him.

Nevertheless, Ron found that he wasn't worried about what Kim would say or do. Perhaps he was just too tired right now, and the worrying would come later.

But no, he didn't regret his offer, although he might get roasted if Shego came to her senses and decided that she didn't want anything to do with him.

He really must be tired because his mind kept wondering. The day's events had finally caught up with him. And to think that this morning he was worried about that English assignment on "The Merchant of Venus."

What was tomorrow again? Ah yes, Saturday. The first thing he should do when he woke up was to go and see Kim, he mused absentmindedly. He had to let her know that he was alright, and maybe she would even agree to go to Bueno Nacho with him, like old times.

And then… Well, he should really do some of his homework, including that extra stuff Mr. Barkin had given him for breathing too loudly in class. And when he was finished that, and if Kim didn't want to do anything with him….

Ron jerked himself awake from where he had been drifting off, and scrambled into his pajamas. He took special care to be quiet so he wouldn't wake Rufus, who's rather loud snores attested to the fact that the mole-rat had dozed off behind his master's pillow. The poor little guy needed all the sleep he could get to get well.

The fact was that Ron really didn't have anything to do if Kim wouldn't spend time with him, or at least nothing pleasant. He hadn't realized just how much of his life revolved around his best friend until, suddenly it seemed, she wasn't really there to be with him.

And that was when he had realized that he didn't really have any other friends. Well, there was Felix, of course, but he was usually busy working with his mother. Besides, Ron found it...difficult hanging around with Felix. No matter how hard he tried, the Rentin boy always managed to beat him at games, sports, contests; whatever they happened to be doing together. And there was only so much of that he could take, even when it was always good-natured.

He concentrated on his toothbrush, making certain he was scouring every inch of his mouth with the rough bristles. He spat strong toothpaste and rinsed.

Well, maybe tomorrow evening, if Kim didn't want to do anything, maybe he would make good on his offer. He would show Shego that he could be her friend, and a good one at that.

His covers felt chilly as he crawled underneath them and he huddled up reflexively while he waited for them to warm up. He pulled his pillow down closer to his head so he wouldn't hurt Rufus during the night. Now that he was in bed Ron could defiantly feel how tired he was. His aching muscles relaxed slowly, his eyes drifting closed like lead waits in warm water.

Tomorrow he would see Shego, and he would make good on his promise.

A small smile slipped around his mouth as his mind departed for the restful realm of sleep.

* * *

Yay! Another chapter posted and finished. I do hope it was to everyone's satisfaction. Next to be updated will probably be "Son of the Monkey Man", but we shall see. 

Oh, and one other thing…That button down there on the left side of the screen told me it's lonely, it doesn't get clicked on enough, poor thing. So in a totally unmotivated surge of altruism I am beseeching you to click on the poor thing and give me some feedback. I know you'll make that lonesome little button _so_ happy!

See you next time!


	8. The Morning After

LYBCD chap 8

Disclaimer: If I owned Kim Possible, this story would most likely be a series of episodes.

Thank you to all of my wonderful reviewers! Also thanks to all of the other people who are reading and enjoying the story. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and if you feel like it, you can check out my Corpse Bride story Love Is Worth Dying for, which was just finished yesterday, and my new story for Disney's Fillmore called Darkness: Master of Shadows, which was just started yesterday. ;) (shameless plug…)

Enjoy!

* * *

Dedicated to my parents and brother, who took me to see "The Taming of the Shrew" at Stratford, and put me in the writing mood.

* * *

Saturday dawned, misty and inviting, a wonderful working-man's holiday, but as the sun emerged to glare down bright and hot Shego still remained huddled up under her green eiderdown, deaf to the world. She slept the sleep of the mentally exhausted far into the morning, and was only roused finally by some soon-to-be-unfortunate person pounding loudly on the dark wood of her door.

At first, she tried to ignore the ignominious pounding, which seemed to be driving right into her skull, but when it became apparent that this course of action was not working, she flung aside the bedclothes and advanced on the closed door with a snarl.

Wrenching open the door, Shego was confronted with the more-or-less expected sight of her employer, one tiny hand raised to continue pounding.

If Shego had been one of any number of predators, she would probably have flown at the annoying blue man and dismembered him on the spot for disturbing her well needed rest. However, although some people almost certainly believed otherwise, Shego was by no means a wild animal. Therefore, she decided to give the good doctor exactly seven and a half seconds to explain himself before she turned him to charcoal, which was really more than fair, when you thought about it.

"Sh…Shego! Wait!" Drakken piped out, his voice about two octaves higher than usual. She must have looked truly frightening.

"Talk fast," Shego growled. "And if the next words out of your mouth are _not_ 'the lair is on fire' you'd better get ready for some pain." She gathered her black satin robe more tightly around her and then ignited her free hand slowly, holding it up as a warning.

"Y…Yes, of course," Drakken gulped. Then, seeming to rally somewhat, he said "But this is urgent! Our prisoner has escaped, and I suspect treachery!"

So her idiot of a boss had finally figured it out, or been told. She would have to be careful, although… Shego smiled inwardly as a plan trickled into her head. Out loud she groaned and slapped one hand to her head.

"You woke me up at nine a.m. _on my day off_ for _that_?" she snarled. "And you expect to _not_ get roasted? Are you sure one of the imbeciles you insist on hiring didn't just leave the kid's cell unlocked or something?"

"No, no, no!" Drakken exclaimed, and leant closer to her conspiratorially. "I am certain one of my henchmen is really a spy for Jack Hench!" This was too easy.

"Jack Hench doesn't give a fig about you," Shego snapped. She had trouble keeping her mirth inside, but she had had lots of practice after all. She continued, "Besides, Hench already got revenge on you for your little thefts by sending you all of these discount mercenaries in the first place." Drakken was momentarily sidetracked.

"You think he cheated me?" he asked in surprise.

"Doy!" Shego turned away, as though in disgust, and made to go back into her room, but then stopped and turned with a pensive air. "You know…" she began.

"Yes?" Drakken interrupted eagerly.

The villainess shrugged. "It might not be anything, but you know that new henchman Bill?"

"Yes, what about him. He's only been here for three months."

"Mmmhmmm." Shego had retreated into her room a little and was leaning casually against the wall. "Well," she continued, "did you happen to notice that in the past three months Kimmie and her sidekick have been taking us down much faster than ever before?"

"Well, but…" Drakken stopped, considering. "You know, you're right, Shego!" he said, brightening. "They _must _have an agent in here if Kim Possible is foiling my plans so easily. But surly, it can't be Bill. After all Shego, he _is _the one who captured…that fellow. Surly he wouldn't have done that if he was working under cover."

"_riiiiight_," Shego drawled, bored and nasty with just a pinch of mockery. The only way Drakken could possibly see through this would be if all of those brain cells he was missing had come back from vacation yet. Shego allowed a slow smile to slip around her mouth. "Because there is _no_ way he could have been doing it to gain your trust and favour so he could get away with more sabotage in the future."

"Yes yes, you're absolutely right, Shego!" Drakken clenched his small hands in fury over his trusted henchman's 'betrayal.'

Sold.

"I'm going to march down right now and have him locked up and interrogated before he reports to Kim Possible again!" Drakken whirled around all set to do just that, but an unexpected, casual blast of plasma in front of him caused the mad scientist to jump back with a yelp, spoiling the effect.

"Why don't you let _me_, capture him?" Shego suggested. "I could use some entertainment." Her voice was calm and reasonable, but there was something in her eyes and manner which told Drakken that he had better let her go after Bill, or else she would be getting her 'entertainment' elsewhere, and that it would not be pleasant, or healthy for him. Drakken managed a sickly smile and nod of agreement before retreating.

Left to herself, Shego smiled. The day was off to a good start.

* * *

As Ron walked down the road towards Kim's house he couldn't prevent himself from feeling nervous. This was rather like confronting his mother the time he had eaten all of the cookies she had baked for charity. But this wasn't his mother, it was his best friend, and once the unpleasantness was over everything would be fine, or as fine as it had been between them lately at any rate.

His knock on the door was answered almost immediately, and he was confronted with the spectacle of Anne Possible attempting to get into her white doctor's coat while balancing books, briefcase, and breakfast in one hand.

"Morning Mrs. Dr. P. Got a match?" he joked.

"Ha ha. Very funny, Ronald," Mrs. Possible admonished, but she was smiling. She somehow managed to shrug her other arm into her coat, then set everything carefully on the floor and crossed to Ron, enfolding the him in her arms before the startled boy knew what was happening. "I'm so glad you're safe," she whispered into his hair.

Ron was caught completely off guard. "Ah, thanks," he said uncertainly, "but I've been captured before, lots of times. What makes this one different?"

"Just little things, I suppose," Mrs. Possible said, finally releasing him. "I don't think it's been for a whole night before, and I also heard you had to fight Shego."

"Well, yeah, I guess." Ron rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. The fight and Shego were two things he really didn't want to get into right now. "Did Kim tell you that?" he asked instead.

"Yes, she did," Mrs. Possible said. "You should talk to her, Ron. She was very worried about you."

"I'm sorry I worried everyone." But inside, Ron felt his heart rise, just a little. "I should really talk to her," he said. "That's kinda why I came over. Could you tell her I'm here?"

"I'm sorry Ron," Mrs. Possible said. "Kim had to leave for work already. But she did say to ask you if you wanted to meet her at Bueno Nacho at three for a late lunch."

"That sounds great," Ron said, though he really had wanted to talk to her right away. "Wouldn't it have been more convenient to meet for supper though?" he asked.

"I think she may be going out tonight." Mrs. Possible smiled, not unkindly. "She was worried about you last night Ron, so she cancelled her date."  
"Really?" Ron was torn between disappointment that Kim was going out with the monkey again, and gratitude that she had put his safety before her date last night. "Thanks Mrs. Dr. P," he said neutrally. "I'll see her at three then."

"Take care Ron."

* * *

In truth, Ron was feeling better. He was sitting in front of his computer staring at what would eventually become an English essay, given enough time and the appropiet application of stress-induced inspiration. But he couldn't keep his mind on his work, and instead it wandered.

The possibility that Kim would cancel a date because he was missing had simply never occurred to him. It might be easier to repair their friendship than he'd thought. And maybe someday she would even be able to see him as, well, something more than just a friend. But there was no sense in getting ahead of himself.

One thing was certain; he couldn't spend all night working on homework. Aside from the fact that nobody should be working on schoolwork on a Saturday night, he was pretty sure that more than a few hours of trying to decipher Shakespeare would drive him insane.

But then he already knew what he could do tonight. It was something he should do, if only to prove that he had kept his word, and also, surprisingly, something he thought he would enjoy.

He searched through the piles on his floor and unearthed his mission clothes, then carefully reached into the large pocket on his cargo pants and retrieved a certain scrap of paper with a certain number written on it.

_Here goes_, Ron thought. Then he reached for the phone.

* * *

Shego was in the middle of a wonderful shower. It was true that you could rarely beat a hot bath in scented oils for pure bliss, especially after a workout or an encounter with the Princess, but Shego had always liked showers particularly. The pounding spray had the effect of seeming to wash away all worries and problems and leaving her clean and fresh. When she was upset or annoyed and couldn't get rid of the feelings by destroying something or beating the stuffing out of a few punching bags or henchmen, a shower was generally the answer.

It was shaping up to be a good day. Bill had been understandably shocked when she had 'confronted' him about how he had supposedly been a spy for Possible for three months, but fortunately his denials hadn't meant anything to Drakken, and Shego had been able to give him a very satisfactory beating, which had done wonders for her mood.

She and Drakken had then sent him packing with the customary threats and warnings, and Shego had helped herself to a freshly blended fruit shake with protein powder, and then decided that she would have a nice long shower, not for any particular reason, but just because she felt like it.

She finished soaping and began to rinse, running her fingers through her long hair to feel its silky smoothness. She let the water run for another minute, reveling in the heat of the pounding water, then shut it off and grabbed a towel.

The phone rang, and Shego grumbled a little good-naturedly. But she was feeling very mellow. If it was a telemarketer he might even get away with his life today. She still hadn't figured out how telemarketers were able to access her unlisted number, but for once it didn't bother her.

"Hello?" she said, a little sharply it was true.

"Um…hi, Shego?"

It was Ron. _It was Ron!_ Instantly Shego's day seemed to get about a thousand times better.

"Hey Ron, it's good to hear from you." She made an effort to sound casual, but knew he could probably hear the excitement in her voice. But somehow, that didn't bother her.

"Oh, hi Shego" Ron said. He did sound a little nervous, but not scared. "I was going to hit that mini-golf place in Lowerton tonight and I was wondering if you'd like to join me." Somehow, he made the offer sound both sweet and apologetic, as though he was worried that something as tame as 'mini-golf' would offend her. Well, Shego would just have to show him how wrong he was.

"I'd love to Ron," she said. She knew this was going to be a good day.

* * *

So Shego finally got her revenge on Bill. Happy endings all around. And Ron's not feeling quite so bad about himself and his relationship with Kim as he was in the last chapter, although I don't know how many Rongo fans will actually be happy about that. ;)

This chapter was difficult to write, although I'm not sure why, and I have a feeling it's a little choppy. So sorry about that, it was difficult to put together.

Next chapter will treat you to Ron and Shego's outing, so wish me luck for writing it!

Leave a review if you feel like it, and you will make my day!


	9. A Night Beginning

LYBCD chap 9

Disclaimer: It's not mine!

Thank you so much to all my reviewers! I love you all, and could never have gotten this chapter out with my busy schedule without all of your lovely comments!

Enjoy this chapter, and the next one will be out as soon as possible.

* * *

Dedicated to everyone who knows that sometimes it's better when your friend is furious.

* * *

Bueno Nacho was as he remembered it, unchanged in the interminable day and a half since he had visited it last. Ron wasn't really sure what he had expected, but it seemed like too much had happened in his life lately for this simple, Mexican restaurant to still be exactly the same.

Ron pushed through the glass door and inside. There was the usual gaggle of girls sitting together in the corner, eating their salads and diet sodas. There was a family of four ordering at the counter, the young children hanging off their parents and begging for treats. And Kim was there.

She was seated in their booth, as he always thought of it, alone. She must have already ordered, and was busy poking her salad ineffectually with a plastic fork. She looked so beautiful. She was wearing a long-sleeved, pink top with little gold sequins sewn across the shoulders and down the center, but it wasn't just her clothes. She just looked beautiful. Her glowing hair fell across her shoulders, and her lips were pursed in a small smile. She sat there, waiting for him.

It gave Ron a strange pang to see her there. It was a familiar scene, yet somehow distant. That was how she always used to sit when she was waiting for him.

How long had it been since they had come here together? Lately it seemed he always occupied their booth alone. And now she sat there and…why couldn't things just be the way they used to be? He had a moment where he desperately wished he hadn't called Shego. Aside from the fact that he now had another secret from Kim, from everyone, he knew she wouldn't approve.

"Hey Ron," Kim greeted him as he sat down. "I didn't order for you. I wasn't sure whether you'd want four nacos or five."

Ron chuckled weekly at the joke. He was having a hard time, both with what he knew he needed to do, and with being there with Kim. There was an awkwardness between them, one that never used to be there. He sighed and shifted on the bench, making the leather seats squeak in annoyance. He'd better get on with it.

"Kim, I'm sorry about challenging Shego. I know it was stupid, I just…"

"It's okay Ron." Kim gave him an encouraging smile. "I know, you weren't thinking. Yes, it was stupid and foolish of you to challenge someone so far above your abilities, but you made a mistake. It just means we'll have to catch Drakken another day."

"Uh, yeah, great," Ron said heartily, but his smile felt a little tight. For some reason, Kim's cheerful dismissal had not made him feel better. He was thinking of Shego again, of some of the things she had said to him last night. He gave himself a mental shake. He was here with Kim, finally, and he was determined to enjoy it. He got up to order.

The rest of lunch was more or less satisfactory. Ron put what had happened behind him, all of it, including what he was planning to do tonight, and just enjoyed hanging out with his friend. They talked about school, and assignments, and he listened as she talked about Josh, and the movie they were going to see this evening. Listening to her talking about the Monkey that way was always painful, but at least she was talking to him now, at least she was confiding in him. Too often lately he hadn't even had that.

After about an hour Kim excused herself, saying she had to go, and left Ron with the promise that she would help him with his English essay sometime next week.

* * *

She felt great as she rode home. The tires of her ten-speed mountain bike seemed to be singing to her. Things were patched up with Ron, and she had another date with Josh. This time they were going to a play. It was one of those new ones, experimental, and apparently her boyfriend was very into them. She had thought he was only into visual art, but apparently he was even more cultured than she had known.

She wasn't altogether certain that she would really like this experimental theatre, or that she even got the point of it. How exactly did 'shock value' improve a play? Not to mention all the other odd things the actors reputedly did. And what exactly were they trying to get across to the audience? Wasn't theatre just supposed to be entertainment? _Give me Shakespeare any day_.

Kim had already decided to never take any drama courses when she went to university. She wasn't really sure what she was going to be as of yet, but it wasn't someone who wrote, directed or studied one of these ridiculous plays. Still, her boyfriend liked it, and she enjoyed being with him, even if she didn't really understand what he was talking about some of the time.

_Boyfriend._ Kim smiled at the word. Was there ever a more wonderful word in the history of the English language?

Bonnie had been very smug about something at when she saw her in the mall today. She had kept glancing at Kim out of the corners of her eyes and smiling in an infuriatingly self-satisfied way. Normally it would have bothered Kim, but she was just too happy today.

Tomorrow Drakken and Shego needed tracking down and putting in their place, namely jail, but that was tomorrow. Wade would call her if they attempted to use the nano-cuboid for anything dastardly, although she would be seriously tempted to strangle him if he called in tonight. The play should be fun, the goodbye would probably be wonderful, and cheer practice was going wonderfully.

And now she and Ron were on the level again. It was just such a wonderful day.

* * *

Ron walked home slowly. He was thinking, but his mind was detached, calm and reflective. When he reached his house he still felt…unsettled, but he was able to shake it off with difficulty. He opened the door and went inside.

His mother was there, making dinner; chicken. The site brought a smile to his lips.

"Hey mom," he greeted. He inhaled extravagantly. "Mmmm, delicious." Although he could think of a couple of spices that would add significantly to the flavour.

"Hi sweetie," his mother answered, taking the bird from the oven and setting it on the stovetop. She removed her over mitts and set them down by the drain bored, later to be forgotten and desperately looked for. "I hope you're hungry, and don't forget to do the dishes, will you?"

"Oh sorry, but I can't do them tonight mom," Ron admitted. I'm going out tonight."

"Going to the movies with Kimberly?"

"Uh, actually I'm not spending tonight with Kim." He felt a little thrill of excitement as he said it. When was the last time he'd gone out with someone other than Kim?

"Oh?" His mother was now searching for her big carving knife, head bent over the appropriate drawer. "Who are you meeting then?"

"Just…a friend." Ron smiled.

* * *

When he arrived at the golf course, the sky was just starting to get dark. The vault above him was streaked with dark and pale blues which combined spectacularly in a pattern of mystery and promise for the night ahead.

Ron spared a long, appreciative glance for this celestial canvas, before heading for the ticket booth and gaily painted iron fence which lead into the flood-lit grounds.

When he'd called Shego on the phone, Ron hadn't had any specific activity in mind, except that he wanted it to be a 'friends' outing, and so had been avoiding such things as romantic movies, dances and walks in the park. He had chosen mini gold largely because it was one of his favorite pastimes. He wasn't great at it, but he could usually hold his own. It hadn't occurred to him at the time that Shego would probably view mini gold as stupid and childish. Not only was she an older, probably sophisticated woman, but she was also a ruthless villain.

The thought trickled treacherously into his mind as he stood by the entrance. _Maybe she won't even come. Maybe this has all just been a game to her._ Only the thought of last night kept him striding resolutely on and through the gate. She had not been lying. She had not been playing some cruel game. He _knew_ she hadn't.

He stopped outside the little on-course café where they had agreed to meet and searched the tables for the familiar figure. He almost missed her. Seated far back at one of the tables, Shego was surprisingly unobtrusive.

She was not wearing her usual jumpsuit. Instead, she had on a dark green, sleeveless top with a turtle-neck, and velvety pants of dark purple. He black hair was tied back in one long braid. She looked…different. Amid the families and couples who still crowded the golf course and café she looked appropriate, like she belonged there. She certainly didn't look like a super villain bent on world domination. Even her remarkable skin tone was less noticeable. She rose when she saw him and walked over, out from under the café's open roof. Ron searched for something to say.

* * *

Shego had never really liked mini-golf, even when she was a child. She had never liked regular golf either, but that was different. She doubted _anyone_ actually liked golf. It was just something they _did_. It was a way for the aging baby boomers to pass the time and spend their money that allowed for open air and copious amounts of pesticides. No, miniature golf was something different.

But Ron had asked her, and so here she was.

He looked rather shocked, although whether it was to see her, or to see her outfit, she wasn't certain. She had made an effort, and decided against wearing something too far on the jaw drop scale, but she was fully aware that her outfit was attractive. Just because she was going to give Ron the chance to get to know her as a friend didn't mean that she couldn't show him that she was a _woman_.

Anyway, he currently looked a little tongue-tied, so she decided to begin.

"Hey Ron," she said. "Thanks for inviting me. I warn you, I'm not very good." _Hmmm,_ she thought. _A double meaning, and I didn't even catch it. I must be distracted._

"That makes two of us," Ron said, smiling. He seemed more relaxed now. "Would you like me to go pay and fetch the golf stuff?"

Shego cocked her head to the side slightly. It was too good to miss.

"I don't mind grabbing your 'putter' for you Ron," she whispered.

To his credit, it took Ron a moment to get the inference. When he did he turned bright red and his eyes got as wide as golf balls. "Umm, ah…" he muttered uneasily. Shego instantly sobered. Fun was fun, but she didn't want to scare him off. She should at least wait until he knew her a little better.

"I'm sorry Ron," she said seriously. But you must admit that you set yourself up for that one. Were we gonna play some golf?"

"Uh, yeah." Ron managed to get his mind back out of the 'overload' area and back into his situation in general. "I thought we'd eat afterward if you're not too hungry. The food here is great for following several hours of yelling at a little inanimate ball."

"Sounds good," Shego answered. The two of them headed off for the ticket office, Shego's calm, even playful exterior belying her suddenly whirling thoughts. If she was lucky she would have a couple of hours before he started asking questions. And what on earth was she going to tell him?

As they walked the flood lights brightened, beating back the darkening sky.

* * *

In his mountain lair, the genetically altered, would be simian Monkey Fist was busy. He leant forward on his polished oak desk, long hair fingers typing on his keyboard while making notes with a pen grasped in the opposable toes of one long foot.

He pulled up files and clicked them closed again, searching for everything he could find about her, everything there was to find. He would need some more surveillance, which was now underway via his monkey ninjas, but he was certain he was on the right track. Perhaps he had been wrong to never investigate Stoppable's other enemies before. His one sojourn into this 'mad scientist's' base had proved most enlightening.

There was only one explanation for what he had seen. This woman was his foe's weakness. It was through her that he would finally be rid of that undeserving boy.

This 'Shego' might be the answer to all his problems.

* * *

Thanks for reading, guys! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I will try to get the next one out fairly soon.

I once saw an infrared photo of a golf course. The pesticides on these places are extremely heavy, and NOT healthy for anyone. They were literally coating the trees. My town has recently introduced a pesticide bylaw, which makes me very happy, even though it of course won't really affect us for a few years. However, this wasn't a shameless pesticide bash, I also think it was in character and made sense for Shego. She strikes me as a person who takes care to learn about things before going about them, and who would be very likely to point out the foolishness of others. No offence to anyone who likes golf, it is simply my opinion.

The 'putter' line can be blamed almost entirely on Mr. Average, who used this joke in his review. I just couldn't resist using it. Yes, it was a little low brow, and cruder than I usually am, but it was a little funny, wasn't it? _(ducks under barrage of thrown objects.)_ I can use the same defense as before. Shego I can see doing that. However, don't get used to crude jokes and lines, because I can guarantee that this is as bad as it gets.

So…yeah. Feel free to comment on that, as well as on our old friend the dark figure. Like I said, I didn't forget about him. ;) What do you all think?

I've got other stuff I could say, but this is getting pretty long, so I'll just leave you with this familiar note. Please review. It lets me know what I can correct, and what wowed you. And it helps me through the lonely nights.

See you next time!


	10. Inner Thoughts

LYBCD chap 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Ron, Shego, or anyone affiliated with them. No profit is gained from this activity save the enrichment of my writing ability, and my soul. ;)

Thanks to everyone who is still reading, and an extra thank you to all those who sent me lovely reviews for chapter 9! I really don't know what I'd do without you guys! (I would be very, very lonely.)

(Excuses for the lateness of this chapter are in my profile.) ;)

* * *

Inspirations for this chapter come from Disney's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," which was a wonderful, touching movie. It hasn't inspired any actual events in this chapter, just some moods. This chapter is dedicated to this lovely slice of childhood.

* * *

This chapter is also dedicated to my family, who help me with my classes, work, and every aspect of my life. Without them, this world would be a very lonely place.

* * *

As the sun set the sky turned from rosy pink to a purple dream. The glowing globes of light on their poles seemed not to merely illuminate the golf course, but instead to drape it in soft splendor wherein every shining surface gleamed and everything else seemed muted and gentle. Faint laughter drifted over from the far holes from distant, contented couples.

The whole, beautiful scene gave Shego an overwhelming urge to cry, to sob out her aching chest. She wasn't even really sure why, only that there was a terrible burning pain inside her. The burning clawed up into her throat and behind her eyes as she stood waiting for her turn. But she couldn't let it take over, not today. She fought the tears, beat them down and stamped on them. Then she turned from her internal battle to meet her partner of the evening in the fairy light.

All in all, Ron was a fairly decent player, not terrific, although his hand-eye coordination was better than most people would expect. Shego wondered what had compelled him to choose this particular activity. But she found that once she got beyond the unfortunate memories it was kind of fun. The course he had chosen was the kind where every hole was a series of angles and perfectly aimed shots. It was nearly impossible to get a hole in one without being a total math geek, and Shego knew it would have been extremely frustrating if she had been trying to win, that is, if she had been playing with anyone but Ron.

At the moment he was trying to coax his ball through a series of underwater obstacles; a forest of seaweed, a jelly-fish and the ten arms of a giant squid, all of which were doing their utmost to make certain he never got past this hole.

"Alright Buddy," Ron was telling his ball. "I know you can do this." He lowered his voice as though he was imparting the deadliest of secrets, but Shego could still hear him. "All you have to do," he continued, "is bang off that wall, through the squid's tentacles, around that rock, off that _other_ wall, and…" He trailed off and eyed his spherical warrior uncertainly. "Just let me know if you want me to repeat anything," he added.

Shego just barely managed to keep herself from laughing, but she was strangely reluctant to indulge too much in this unusual activity, almost as though she were still a child, afraid her face might stick that way.

She cast a furtive glance around to make certain that they weren't holding anyone up, but fortunately most of the other patrons were further on in the course, and those behind them were still a couple of holes away.

Shego was still not quite certain that she wasn't dreaming. She was here with Ron and they weren't on opposite sides for once. She didn't have to watch him through a security camera or sneak furtive glances of him in between punches. She had of course never told anyone, but her rivalry with Kim stemmed almost entirely from the red-head's abuse of her blond sidekick.

She had never had him, never anyone like him. Shego had never had anyone she could trust, talk to, _know_.

So Kim had him. She had won some universal lottery of fate.

So why did she always act as though she had lost?

The problem with Ron was that he always aroused these unanswerable questions in her mind; questions that she ought to be pretending she had forgotten.

Ron's golf ball bounced improbably around the last obstacle and came to rest innocently not three feet from the hole.

"Booyah!" Ron exclaimed triumphantly, effectively snapping Shego out of her confusing reflections.

"Not bad," she commented, leaning nonchalantly back against a gaily painted arch. "You know, you're quite good at this," she continued honestly. "Do you come here a lot with K… anyone?"

"Nah." Ron moved off to the side of the green so Shego could take her turn. They didn't have to hurry since there was no one directly behind them. "Would you believe I'm actually quite good at angles and stuff? When it interests me anyway. I just can't stay awake in those math classes though. I seriously think the teachers put some sort of sleeping gas in the chalk dust."

Shego smirked a bit as she lined up her ball. She said pensively, "I always enjoyed math in high school."

"Really?" Ron asked. He sounded genuinely interested.

"Well I wasn't a genius with it," Shego said offhandedly. Inside she felt as though she were walking a tightrope through memory. She stepped carefully from one word to the next for fear of falling into the abyss. "I used to really like the word problems especially," she continued. "It was like the whole world was becoming a math problem, and I could solve it. And solving the problems felt wonderful. Every one brought me closer to understanding everything." She stopped talking and looked up from her motionless, pink ball. Ron was watching her with his large eyes just as though he knew what she was talking about.

"I never figured I'd have math in common with anyone," Ron said, but his eyes told her something different. Shego suddenly felt a little self conscious. There was too much _understanding_ here. That was the only way she could think to describe it. The whole scene felt unreal. She was in fairyland with the floating will-o-the-wisps of the course lights in the background, the small, ivy-covered bridge off to her side, and Ron standing before her, smiling, his pale hair melting into the night.

She found herself saying "Do you mind if we take a break and get something to eat?"

"Sure," Ron said immediately. "We can finish up after."

It had worked and she was off the hook for…something. But oddly, Shego felt her heart sink a little as they picked up their golf things.

Go figure.

* * *

As they headed for the café, Ron stole a glance at Shego. So far, this night had gone wonderfully. He had initially thought he would be on edge all evening, just from playing golf with Shego, who was not only a villainous, but also a _woman_. And sure, there had been a few awkward spots, generally whenever Kim came up in conversation, but on the whole it was surprising how easy it had been to just be with her. Easy and _fun_. It brought to mind something he had always thought when he and Kim fought villains, but had never really been able to prove to himself until now. _They're just like us_, he thought.

Sure, they had a different moral code. Villains did bad things and that was why they had to be stopped, but most of them, when you actually stopped to hear them talk, sounded like real people. He knew Drakken slept with a teddy bear and enjoyed watching Snowman Hank, and that Killigan had a soft spot for goldfish and a favorite niece. They were real people, no matter what they had done.

But the really funny thing was that he hadn't been thinking of Shego as a villain for most of the evening. Once he started talking and joking with her it was easy to forget and to just see her as a _person_.

He shot a glance at her as she slid gracefully into her seat at one of the umbrella-topped tables. They had picked one out from under the awning because most of those underneath were crowded with families. Outside the calm of night still reigned for the most part.

Shego looked nervous. Her face was perfectly calm, but her hands were unsettled. Her long, slender fingers tapped on the foe-glass table. Ron suddenly realized that he had never seen Shego nervous before. The sight took him back to their conversation last night. Was it only last night? She had said that she loved him. Ron drew a breath slowly, felt the air silently fill his lungs, and he suddenly felt nervous to.

Why him? Was there no justice that she had fallen for him? It should be someone better, someone who could return her feelings. He couldn't fathom why she felt this way about him, but he didn't want her to be nervous, just for him. He felt awful.

"What's good here Ron?" Shego asked, breaking into his thoughts as though she had swung a sledgehammer through a plate-glass window.

Oh, that was right. They were here to get something to eat. They weren't on a date, but they were here to get something to eat. As friends. As if he and Kim had come here, except that they didn't come here anymore because Kim had stopped liking mini-golf after fifth grade, decided it was too young for her; and anyway, if he ever did come here with Kim again he would hope that it _was_ a date because he would love to go out on a date with Kim and after all, this was a very relaxed atmosphere, and…

"The eggplant parmesan!" Ron burst out. That was better. People were staring, but his embarrassment was definitely preferable to the chaos that his mind had been a mere moment before. Except that Shego was staring at him as though he came from another planet. You just couldn't have everything.

* * *

_What on earth was that about?_ Shego wondered. He had seemed to be enjoying himself, relaxed and playful. She kept forgetting how much he was going through.

Possible. Had Possible done something? Or was Ron feeling guilty about being here with her, behind the princess's back? Should she ask him what was bothering him, or was it better to ignore it and change the subject?

Argh! She wasn't any good at this! Friendship! She hadn't had a friend for years. Heck, she'd _never_ had a real friend. She had discovered that years ago.

But Ron…Ron was different. And she could at least try. She had to be a better friend than the princess.

"Is there something wrong, Ron?" The blond boy hesitated, and then shook his head.

"I'm…just a little crazy today Shego," he said with a wry smile. The villainess nodded and let the subject drop. She would wait, and if he really needed help, maybe he would ask her.

"Okay," she said then. "I have another question for you."

"Uh…sure," Ron agreed warily. Shego raised one slender eyebrow and allowed a small smirk to emerge.

"This place, the café on a miniature golf course, serves eggplant parmesan?" she asked incredulously.

"Oh!" Ron grinned. "Yes actually," he said. "It serves a lot of good dishes; linguini, pizza, a really nice chili dog, but the eggplant parmesan is my favorite. They use four different cheeses, and the peals are scored in this special way, so they don't come off whole in your mouth. It's not quite as good as home made, but…" he trailed off and shrugged, so much as to say 'what is?'

Shego held up her hands in surrender. "All right Mr. Gourmet, you've convinced me," she said with a smile. "I'm gonna go freshen up, and then we can order, okay?" Without waiting for an answer, she rose and headed for the corridor which led to the restrooms. She might have put a little extra sway in her hips as she walked, but not too much.

Once in the washroom, Shego placed her hands on the wall on either side of the mirror and looked at herself.

"What am I doing here?" she asked her reflection. Her reflection merely looked back at her out of clear, bewildered, green eyes. "I'm not going to be able to keep this up," Shego continued when she didn't receive an answer. "Even Ron won't be able to put up with me forever. And what am I supposed to do if he and the princess come for a visit? I can't see him get hurt by Drakken and his goons, but if I do anything to compromise my job there I won't have anywhere to go." Her reflection maintained a stony silence. "The best thing I can do," Shego told the slim woman before her, "is sneak around back and take off. I get out of his life now before we get any closer, if we're even likely to get close that is, and he won't have to try to be my 'friend' anymore. Plus _I _won't have to tell him anything about my life," she added. "He probably won't even want to be my friend after I've ditched him anyway."

This thought was somehow not comforting.

Shego drew a deep, slow breath. She already knew she wasn't leaving. To leave now would hurt Ron, betray his trust, and she had already promised herself that she would _not_ hurt him. She wouldn't be like Kimmie. But of course, that was only part of it. She wanted to be here. She felt as though she were on a roller coaster, up and down, dizzy and laughing, screaming with delight at the breathtaking ride.

It was a crazy night, but if she could get through it, then maybe there would one day be others. Maybe she and Ron could be friends, and maybe one day they could be something more.

It was time to go out there and face the most gentle and frightening person in the world.

"I can do this," she told the mirror. "Just try and stop me."

* * *

Thanks for reading guys, and I hope you enjoyed! Next chapter probably won't be out for a while because I am insanely busy right now, but I'll do my best. And yeah, feel free to yell at me about my slow update times. ;)

PS: Eggplant parmesan is delicious. I am a vegetarian, and we make it at home most of the time, but I have had it in some restaurants as well, so I know that some serve it. Ron eats meat, it's true, but he is also something of a gourmet, and I think he would like this dish. As for the golf course serving it…it is unusual, certainly, but they would probably serve some dishes for vegetarians, so it is possible, in my mind. Thank you.

Review if you like, they make me happy.

See ya!


	11. It Has Been Such A Long Night

LYBCD chap 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Ron, Shego, Kim or any of their acquaintances. I am a student with very little money and make absolutely no money out of these stories, so please no suing. ;)

Chapter 11 for everyone! I hope you all enjoyed chapter 10, and thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews I got. I hope you will enjoy this chapter, and give me some more. ;)

I am very sorry about the lateness of this chapter. I had a lot of problems, both with the chapter itself, and with my computer, which kept breaking, or else my monitor would break, etc. Anyway, next chapter will be out soon. Promise.

* * *

This chapter is dedicated to those who feel that they can never be good enough.

* * *

Ron was waiting.

He sat comfortably in the sculpted iron chair and gazed out at the sky, aglow with the unhappy flush of city lights. He had had some time, he now felt, in which to collect his thoughts and prepare for Shego's return. _It's silly to get worked up in any case_, he told himself as he settled back on the cushion. _We both knew this wasn't going to be a date, and so far I've had a lot of fun._ He stopped for a moment to think about that. _I had fun with Shego, and apparently…she had fun with me._ He felt a warm glow inside him at the realization. Besides Kim and occasionally Felix, he didn't really know anyone who could have a good time with him, or who even wanted to give it a try, except for Rufus of course.

"Man, am I hungry," Shego announced smoothly, slipping back into her chair and giving him a small smile. Ron was momentarily caught up again in how un-Shego-like she looked. It wasn't just the clothes; it was her whole manner, the relaxed, _normal_ attitude which she had adopted tonight. And it was what he saw in her face most of all. He shrugged off the passing weirdness and smiled back.

"That's good," he answered. "I took the liberty of ordering for us, since I knew you would be taking my sage advice about your menu selection."

"All right _sage_," Shego said, smirking slightly. "So approximately how long will it be before our food is done?"

* * *

"Shouldn't be too much longer." Ron dithered for a moment, examining the pattern on their table, before lifting his eyes to meet Shego's. She was taken aback by the sudden shyness there. "Can I ask you something?" Ron said seriously.

_Here it comes_, Shego groaned silently. However, she merely made a show of getting comfortable in her chair.

"Go ahead," she replied nonchalantly. Ron offered her a small smile and tapped his fingers against each other thoughtfully.

"Why is it that you don't like mini-golf?" he asked.

"What?" Shego was caught off guard. That was not what she had been expecting him to ask. She glanced sharply at his face and then, seeing his careful smile, she relaxed slightly. He knew exactly what he was doing.

He was too good.

Now, she really relaxed; this story would be much easier to tell, although still a little painful. Carefully, Shego sorted through the story in her mind, and then took a deep breath for courage, and spoke.

"My family was never really what you'd call close," she began, looking not at her companion, but at her neatly folded hands on the table before her. "My mother was always working and my father divided his time between endless business trips and volunteering for Go city's various institutions." She paused and gave Ron a small, rather bitter, smile. "They were good people, just never really good parents.

"But occasionally one or the other or both of them would get a free evening to spend with us and they'd take us some place for dinner or something." Shego waved a hand as though indicating vast distances and possibilities beyond words. My brothers used to love it," She continued after a thoughtful moment. A sigh. "So sometimes we would go mini-golfing. My brothers and I had fun, and my parents were sometimes able to head out for a little while if a problem came up at work, while we continued to play.

"And I don't know exactly when it first happened, but that was where I started to realize that they didn't really think of us as their kids, not inside, not…_properly_. I would see the other families; how the children seemed almost to melt into their parents, as though they were parts of a single whole. There was hugging and laughing and private jokes and, well, a…kind of sparkle when they looked at each other and…I started to notice that it was never present when my parents looked at me. It…it wasn't the same."

Shego glanced up once again, almost timidly, but with hard lines surrounding her mouth. Even she didn't really know what she feared seeing, but nevertheless, she did not find it in Ron's face. His large brown eyes were clear and their depths contained, not pity, but a kind of understanding, as well as an awareness of her pain. This awareness was mirrored in every muscle of his face, and in his large hands, which were closed on each other a little too tightly.

The sight made Shego bite her lip and look away from him, and out over the café, lit against the night. After a moment, Shego continued.

"I kept noticing this, and other things, every time we went there, as well as other places, and after a while I started to think 'I'm not really their daughter; I'm just another obligation.' I knew they only spent time with us because they felt that it was their responsibility. The other parents, they _wanted_ to be there, and share their kids' lives." A painful pause. "The thing you didn't know was missing hurts the most when you discover it, I guess."

She looked back at him again; forced herself to meet his eyes, and felt her mouth twitch into another of those bitter little smiles. "I know it's stupid," she said softly, although her hands clenched the edges of her chair, out of his sight, "but I always associated those…revelations, as well as what came after, with miniature golf courses. I hated them after that." _Except for today, with you._

She was finished.

"It's not stupid," Ron said. "Nothing you feel is." They sat for a moment, not awkwardly, but as though both were exhausted by Shego's recitation, and needed time to come to terms with it. Several of the dining families had already left, and they could hear the other patrons chatting as they ate. Someone laughed softly.

He didn't ask what came after, and she didn't tell him; not tonight.

The moment was broken when they heard the clumping of rubber-soled shoes on tile, and their waiter appeared, with two glasses of ice water, and the platters of food. The waiter was a young man in his twenties, who made polite conversation which neither of them really listened to. At least, Shego knew that she did not. Instead, she stared blankly at her plate. What was this again? Ah yes, eggplant parmesan. Ron said it was really good. It certainly smelled good.

It had the aroma of several mouthwatering cheeses, along with tomatoes and some interesting spices. _That_ was all well and good. It smelled kind of like a spicy pizza. It even kind of looked like a pizza, with the yellow and white cheeses covering the red sauce, except for the pieces of eggplant which she could see poking out sneakily from the edges of the cheese. The flesh of the eggplant, where she could see it, was kind of gray, and the black peal hung off of it in strips. It looked sort of like fish skins. Not appetizing. Shego had never even tasted eggplant before.

It was kind of a relief to be worrying about something as unimportant as her dinner.

"Ron," Shego said, her voice incredulous and her eyes still riveted to the frightening vegetables, "you're sure that this stuff is good?"

"Absolutely!" Ron declared enthusiastically. Shego glanced up and saw he was grinning. A sly smile pulled at her mouth as well.

"All right, than you try it first," she countered. _If he is trying to trick me into eating something disgusting for a joke than he's got a death wish,_ she thought, amused. However, Ron merely raised one eyebrow at her and then, still grinning, he sliced off a sizable portion of his dinner and, with a flourish, inserted it into his open mouth. He closed his eyes and chewed dramatically, giving little sounds of enjoyment.

Shego was still suspicious, but nevertheless, she slowly sawed off a corner of her own meal with her knife, then she brought the morsel to her dark lips. It entered. There was a pause as Shego gradually allowed the bite of food to move around her mouth, as though she had all the time in the world. Then she bit into it, and chewed.

Ron was watching her again with his grin still firmly in place. He now looked slightly smug.

"It's not bad," Shego admitted, after swallowing her mouthful. It was delicious; a quintessence of cheese, sauce and spices overlaid with a strange, almost mushroom like flavor that was most likely the eggplant, but after all the fuss she had made beforehand, Shego decided she was _not_ about to praise it to the skies. She smirked across at her dinner companion, daring him to see through her nonchalance. "I might have known you weren't stupid enough to try and trick me," she teased.

"Ah, but I _did_ trick you," Ron declared proudly. "And I did it by being perfectly honest."

Shego couldn't help but laugh at that, although if Drakken had dared to try something similar he would have most likely received a plasma blast to the face. But somehow, with Ron, Shego didn't feel like she was being degraded or mocked. It was relaxed, and easy. And it felt so good to laugh, as though it helped to shake off the pain of her story, as well as all the worry and heartbreak that had preceded this night.

It wasn't completely gone, of course, but at least for the rest of the evening, the air was clear, and the company was the best she could imagine.

* * *

Finally, the night was over. Shego sighed as she eased the sleek, green hovercraft into its alcove in the lair's hanger. She felt…drained, mentally. Telling her story had taken more out of her than she had let on, more than she had admitted even to herself. Even though it was such a small story, it was exhausting. Now she thought about it, when was the last time that she had let anyone into her life, or told them anything at all about her past?

It had not happened for more than eight years.

But she had already promised herself that she would be honest with Ron, at least as far as was possible. How could she ask him to get to know her if she refused to allow him to see who she was? And this story, as painful as it had been, was at least one that she had been able to tell. _He must have guessed that_, Shego marveled once again. _He is far more astute than he realizes._

How on earth had Kimmie never noticed it? Was it possible that she simply couldn't see it because it was too obvious? Had she really just taken Ron for granted because she really had no idea of who _he_ really was? Shego found that difficult to believe. It was a puzzle, but it was a puzzle that Shego would have to solve another time. She smiled tiredly as she locked up the hovercraft and headed out of the hanger and towards her room. There were no elevators in the lair, unfortunately, but oddly, Shego found it almost relaxing to walk, to move her feet, slowly and calmly. It gave her time to really think about the night.

It had been difficult to tell her story, but now she felt…lighter almost, and she was glad that she had been able to tell Ron, to confide in him. All the time she had been speaking, even when she wasn't looking at him, she had felt his soft brown eyes on her, not judging, only accepting. He received all that she gave him and did not ask for any more. He was so easy to talk to, honest and understanding.

It was kind of scary how open she had been with him. What would she end up telling him when they went out together next time? 'When.' It wasn't an 'if' anymore. She would see him again. With that thought in her mind, Shego slipped silently through the silvery hallways until she reached her rooms. At last, faced with the familiar black door, Shego stopped in the act of unlocking it, when she noticed the note which was stuck to her door with scotch tape.

_Shego, I couldn't find you and so this is to inform you that project Doppelganger is a go. Come to my lab first thing tomorrow morning to discuss the details._

- _Dr. Drakken, future ruler of Earth_

"Charming," Shego murmured sarcastically. She glanced with disgust at her boss' title at the bottom of the note, before tearing the annoying piece of paper off and frying it until only gray, feathery ash remained. She unlocked her door and entered, shutting out the sleeping lair, as well as any unfortunate idiots whose heads were two sizes too big.

This was something else to worry about, but she would have to worry about it tomorrow. For now, all she wanted was to sleep.

Tomorrow would come soon enough.

* * *

Walking home in the dark, Ron was happy. The half moon and the glittering stars over his head smiled from their resting places in the sky, and a few playful clouds chased each other over trees and behind sleeping houses. Ron hoped that Rufus was also smelling the sweet bouquet of night air. When he got home, Ron decided, he would open the windows wide and let the cool starlight dust his room with silver.

He wasn't thinking anything in particular, but only walking, enjoying the cool, gentle evening. He would think about think about this night, and what had happened, what had…grown between him and Shego, but not now. Now, it was enough just to walk in the night.

He started idly wondering where Shego was now; whether she had already arrived back at Drakken's current lair, or where else the moonlit paths of night might have lead her.

Ron sighed and pulled his thin jacket more tightly around him. It had been a good night. He hadn't really found out much about Shego, except that he had discovered that he liked being with her, plus a few crumbs of her past. But that was more than he had really expected. The mini golf game had been fun and…easy. He hadn't felt awkward, or obliged to force the conversation. And now he knew a little more about who she was as a person, and where she was coming from. Maybe he could be her friend after all.

As he rounded a corner a familiar restaurant came in sight.

"Ahh Bueno Nacho," Ron sighed blissfully, inhaling the aromas of cheese and meat which wafted invitingly from the brightly coloured restaurant. It was true that he had already had a large supper, but eggplant parmesan, delicious as it was, just didn't last long enough, and the strong odor of hot cheese was making saliva come to his mouth. Of course, it was very late, almost eleven, but then again, Ron decided, it _was_ on his way home….

Not giving his traitorous common sense a chance to rear its ugly head, Ron advanced to the colorful restaurant, and pushed open one of the swinging doors, causing a small bell to tinkle above his head. The room was brightly lit, reflected constantly against the darkness outside, and almost deserted. Although Bueno Nacho was open twenty-four hours, this was still the dead time of the night, when fast food cravings were at their lowest. However, as Ron walked farther into the restaurant, he noticed a familiar red head of hair in one of the booths at the far back. But it couldn't be, not at this time of night. Then the rest of the scene came into his line of sight, and his feet froze to the suddenly icy ground.

A hypothetical question; if you have betrayed everything your friend stood for in a single night, do you still have the right to feel the gnawing pain of her betrayal?

It didn't matter, because Ron felt it anyway, as though he was burning from the inside out. They hadn't seen him yet, and Ron forced himself to turn away before they did. The least he could do was to disappear; that was probably his most useful function.

Then he was outside, underneath the cold neon lights and distant, hazy stars. He wasn't hungry anymore, and there was no thought in his mind except getting home, to Rufus. Above his head, the moon was distant. She had hidden her face behind a few wisps of cloud, as though she could not bear to watch.

He didn't think, he ran.

* * *

Thank you for reading! I dearly hope that Shego's story was believable and interesting. Of course, it is only a very small part of a greater whole, but I thought it worked better this way. After all, they are just getting to know each other.

Oh, and no, that question wasn't really hypothetical at all. ;)

Believe it or not, your reviews _do_ help me to update, and I love getting them. I hope everyone enjoyed, and the next chapter should be easier.

See you all soon!


	12. Secrets and Mysteries

LYBCD chapter 12

Disclaimer: Ron and Shego are not mine, as evidenced by the fact that they are not together. Kim is not mine, as evidenced by the fact that she has not received the severe talking to that she so justly deserves.

Welcome, all! Thank you so so much to everyone who reviewed. They were wonderful to read and greatly helped me to work on this story, rather than some of my other ones. So, you know, it does help. ;)

This chapter was mostly written to Avril Lavigne, Sarah Brightman and Kelly Clarkson.

Enjoy!

* * *

Dedicated to my friend the fairy queen, who had a birthday recently and who likes my stories. Hope you like this one. Happy Birthday!

* * *

It was hard to explain Ron's reaction.

Kim was dating Josh, and Ron knew that, and he had already convinced himself that he was okay with that as long as it made her happy, and as long as Monkey-boy didn't hurt her or anything, which so far had been the case. She had certainly _looked_ happy last night. Then, too, he knew, logically, that Kim and the monkey would kiss, since they were dating. In fact, he had even _seen_ them kissing before, and more than once. Yes, it was painful, but it shouldn't be paralyzing.

Perhaps one thing that bothered him in this instance was the _nature_ of the kiss. Maybe it was the way Kim's body was pressed into Josh's, as though she were trying to join their hearts together. Their lips were molded together and seemed to prey that they need never be parted. Their eyes had been open, but they saw nothing but each other. No one else mattered in the world, especially bumbling, goofy and annoying sidekicks who should have gone right home instead of nosing in where they weren't wanted.

Because the sight had spoken to Ron of more than a kiss, even a passionate one. It had spoken to him of the future; a future in which Kim and whatever man she eventually fell in love with, whether it was Josh or not, they would share a life together.

But it would not be him, he knew.

It would never be him, because he was far too much of a coward to tell her what he felt, even if he thought that it was possible for her to feel the same way, to return the feelings that coursed through him at the mere thought of her. He had always been a coward, and he always would be, and so she would never see him as anything more.

That was the conclusion Ron came to after running home, as he sat huddled in his darkened bedroom. He didn't cry, but his heart was a burning coal lodged in his throat, and his eyes burned with a dry pain. It hurt far too much to talk, so he couldn't even tell Rufus what had happened. Perhaps that was better anyway. Ron didn't really think he could find the words.

And so he lay there, holding Rufus close to him, because that was the only thing that eased the pain, and his heart burned and kindled his mind into red fire. He lay there until he finally fell asleep, although he never quite realized it.

And he didn't dream, which was more of a relief than he knew.

* * *

When the morning sun slanted through Shego's window, the villainess was already up, and had been so for some time. She had slept well; better than she had expected after her interesting evening, and then the unexpected note from her boss, but that was not the only reason she was up.

Drakken was going to spring a new plan on her today which, while undoubtedly stupid, was also dangerous because it meant that eventually Ron and the Princess would appear to foil it. And when that happened, Shego had no idea of what she would do.

One thing was certain. She could not hurt Ron, nor allow him to be hurt by any of the idiots who inhabited the lair. She had known that she loved Ron for a long time, but it was only recently that she had broken out of the rut she was in, pulled her head out of the murky water, and noticed that he could be hurt, could die, and it would not only be the end for her.

And now that Shego had hope she had to do her part to help her dreams come true too, no matter how corny it sounded.

But, as she had voiced to herself yesterday, she really had nowhere to go if Drakken discovered her secret; who knew that she had a heart after all? Well, she supposed that everyone had a heart, but she had spent years now trying to hide her own from those around her. She was dangerous and frightening, and she liked it, but it was…ever so lonely.

So now, as she waited for Drakken to wake up and loudly demand that she come and hear his latest plan, Shego was pacing and thinking, although at the moment all she was doing was wearing a hole in her dark wood floor. Sighing, the villainess stopped crisscrossing the room and braced her gloved hands on the edge of her large, black desk. As her hands caressed the smooth surface, Shego forced herself to relax. The long and the short of it was that she had not thought of anything yet, and that it was time to go downstairs. Ron wasn't here yet, and perhaps something would occur to her when she knew more of her boss's plot.

Breathing deeply, Shego schooled her face into the careful mask which she wore every day, then headed out the door, closing it softly behind her and shutting out her sanctuary.

As she walked through the winding, silvery hallways, Shego realized that she probably still had a little leeway. If Ron and the Princess did show up, which when based on past experiences was more than likely, than all she would have to do was keep Kimmie occupied; something she could still find intensely enjoyable. This was usually what she did in these situations anyway. If she and Drakken _did_ get arrested than she would have very few problems breaking out later on, and if they were able to escape, than so much the better.

Shego sighed internally. It wasn't exactly a perfect solution. While she knew Ron could handle Drakken on his own, as well as any number of goons when properly motivated, that motivation was not always there. Far too often she had watched him subdued and captured by idiots he should have been able to take with both hand super-glued to his head, all because that was his role. He was the goofy sidekick who had to be rescued by his irritatingly perfect companion. Shego understood that role somewhat, because she had her own personas that she adopted when necessary. She had also played the fool herself. Long ago.

But it was a dangerous role, whether Ron knew he was playing it or not. And if he was in danger, real, life-threatening danger, Shego knew she would help him.

Game over.

"Ah, Shego!" Drakken called jovially from the doorway up ahead. "Come on in." He paused dramatically then, with a flourish, declared "Prepare to be amazed!"

"I would be amazed if you would shut up for two seconds," Shego offered sarcastically, but she followed him through the door into his main laboratory. If nothing else, at least she could keep thinking while Drakken blathered. She wasn't beaten yet.

* * *

The phone rang, but Ron remained lying on top of his crumpled blue bedclothes. He wasn't asleep, but he didn't want to be awake. Instead, he watched the blades of his fan spinning swiftly over the old cream paint of his ceiling.

If he didn't acknowledge it, than perhaps it didn't really exist.

At the fifth ring, Rufus was roused from his slumber on Ron's pillow. The small pink rodent bestirred himself and crawled over to Ron's head, then waved his paws rapidly before the boy's wide open eyes. Ron blinked slowly.

"I'm not gonna answer it Rufus," he said expressionlessly.

"Hic…KP?" Rufus reminded him.

"Maybe." Ron said. "That's why I'm not answering."

Rufus chattered at him reproachfully, but Ron merely pulled his blankets around him again and rolled over onto his side. The phone was still ringing. It had been going for a long time.

"Mission?" Rufus suggested.

Of course.

Ron felt like going back to sleep, but instead he pulled himself out of bed and picked the plastic crescent up, holding it gingerly to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Ron!" Wade's voice sounded relieved. "I've been trying to reach you."

"What's the mission Wade?" Ron asked, striving to make his voice sound merely sleepy, rather than murderous.

"Ron, ease up!" The boy exclaimed. "You sound like you've been gargling with razor blades. It's just a tip about Killigan. Dr. Director thinks he's got some new plot to go after the world's golf courses. She wants you and Kim to check it out."

Ron smiled sheepishly, although he knew his friend couldn't see it over the phone. "I'm sorry Wade," he said. "I just had a bad night and I'm taking it out on you. No biggie. Where am I meeting?"

"Just head on over to Kim's house and the ride should be arriving by the time you get there," Wade advised. "I'll brief you some more on the way."

"All right Wade. Bye." As he placed the phone gently back in its cradle Ron realized two things. One: he didn't want to see Kim right now. He felt that he absolutely couldn't talk to her without giving away what he had seen. And that could be disastrous if she then asked him, as she was bound to, what he had been doing out so late. Kim had an uncanny ability to tell when he was lying. But that didn't really matter because, two: he was going anyway. Kim needed him, and that was that.

It didn't mean he couldn't worry about it though.

"You've got to help me out Rufus," Ron demanded of his pet as he desperately searched his room for his discarded mission clothes. He managed to pull the pants on without incident, but then somehow got tangled into the black shirt and had to pause in his frantic actions to free himself. The mole rat watched uncertainly from the bed.

"Hic…howhelp?" he asked when Ron's head finally emerged through the right hole in the mess of shirt.

"I don't know," Ron said as he sorted out his sleeves. "Are you feeling well enough to come with us?" Rufus smiled and flashed the thumbs up sign. Ron smiled back, suddenly feeling a little better in spite of himself. "Then…that might be all the help I need, Buddy."

Ron pushed himself off of the floor, fully dressed, and made his way over to the bed. He looked Rufus over before picking him up, to insure that the mole rat was indeed feeling better, and was pleased to see that his skin was once again a healthy pink, and seemed the right temperature. So at least he would have his wingman back, as well as some moral support. Things were perhaps not so black as they had initially seemed. Scooping his pet into one large pocket, Ron headed downstairs to grab a quick bite to eat before heading out.

After all, you couldn't fight evil on an empty stomach.

* * *

Kim was waiting for him when he arrived at her house, breathless and sweating. She called out something when she saw him, but Ron couldn't hear her over the noise of the large, dark blue helicopter which stood in the center of one of Mrs. Possible's larger flower beds. Ron ducked instinctively as he approached, in order to avoid the spinning blades which seemed uncomfortably close above his head, and followed Kim in through the thick metal door. Kim swung the door closed once they were both inside, which dulled the noise of the spinning propellers considerably, although they could still be heard as a dull throbbing whine in the backs of their heads.

Inside, the helicopter was painted light gray and furnished sparsely, with four chairs bolted to the floor and a large cabinet. Besides these there were only several long, gray cabinets which probably contained equipment of some kind.

Ron took a seat on one of the chairs and worked at not making his heavy breathing too obvious. Sometimes he envied Rufus, being carried around in a pocket all the time. Kim seated herself next to him and began checking through her knapsack to see that she had everything she would need for the mission. Ordinarily, Ron loved to examine, and try out, any new gadgets Wade had supplied, but on this occasion, he was too burdened by the weight of the two betrayals, Kim's and his own, to even register what she was taking out.

Oddly, Kim was silent as well, so that the only noise surrounding them was the whirr and whine of the helicopter as it rose steadily and banked toward their destination. Neither of them spoke except for when Wade beeped in to finish briefing them on the mission to come. But after the little kimmunicator screen went dark, no one spoke.

Ron was so caught up in his own thoughts and nagging guilt that it was several minutes before he began to notice Kim's silence and to wonder at it. Slowly he turned to his right and saw that Kim was watching him. Her face was untroubled, but there was something in her eyes, some worry, that Ron had never seen there before. He couldn't begin to guess what it meant, and the next second it was gone, back into those dark green depths; out of reach. Kim smiled at him then, although Ron thought the smile was also a little strained.

"Sorry Ron," she said with a little laugh. "I just have a lot on my mind this morning."

"Hey, that's okay KP" Ron said, adopting his usual carefree attitude. It was surprisingly easy to do given the turmoil inside him; much easier than he had thought it would be. "You know," he continued. "If anything's bothering you, you can always talk to me." He tried to make his voice as understanding as he could.

"Oh, nothing like that." Kim settled back into her chair. She fastened her bag and then stowed it neatly under her seat. This was something Kim did all the time, but now it was merely another sign to Ron that something was wrong. They were Kim actions, but it was as though Kim was only playing at them. It was, thought Ron, like Kim was acting at being Kim. She had never been very good at hiding her feelings from him, perhaps because she rarely did so. Usually when something was bothering her he was the one she vented to.

"Actually…" Kim's voice was casual, but perhaps a little forced as well. "I am a little sorry that we haven't been spending much time together lately. What were you up to last night all alone?"

At any other time, Ron would have been ecstatic that Kim had _noticed_ and actually _cared_ about how often he had been left on his own lately, but not only was last night something he absolutely could not talk about with her, there was almost a sly quality to the apparently casual question. Did she suspect something about last night? And, if so, exactly what did she suspect, that he had been with Shego, or that he had witnessed the scene in Bueno Nacho? There were too many uncertainties, and Ron opted to fall back on his usual defense of being oblivious. It was surprising how often it was necessary.

"Ah, you know me KP," he stated casually. "I managed. I do really want to spend more time with you though. Not that I want you to neglect Mankey, but, well…I miss you too." Kim seemed uncertain, taken aback slightly by his reply.

"Same here Ron," she agreed, after a moment. "We'll have to…"

"Miss Possible, we've arrived at the drop-off point!" the pilot called back with the absolute worst timing.

"We'll talk about it later," Kim finished, her voice taking on a businesslike tone. Clearly she was already in 'mission mode' as Ron liked to call it, which meant that she had probably put whatever was bothering her on a backburner for now, and so should he. Kim was already expertly fastening her parachute, and Ron followed suit, his cheerful mask now firmly in place, as the metal door opened and the wind rushed in like a hunted animal. Ron held his breath, and jumped.

* * *

The mission went well. It was a relief to Kim to have something as simple as a villain with fifty-thousand pounds of growth formula to deal with. She was already working on her own little mystery after all. Ordinarily, perhaps she would have told Ron about it, but it was true that they had been seeing less of each other, and she had already been wondering about him. Then again, perhaps she would not have. She had not even told Wade.

It had only taken about half an hour to stop Killigan, at which time GJ officials had been called and had dragged him off to prison. The ride back had been interesting. She had not been able to think of a subtle way of once again approaching the subject of Ron's whereabouts last night, and so she had merely talked about what they should do after school tomorrow. She had been willing to go to Bueno Nacho that afternoon, but Ron had declined, saying that his mother wanted him home to do chores. Kim supposed that was just as well. It might be better to do some digging on her own before she tried to find out anything else from Ron himself. After all, he had successfully dodged her question once already today.

She didn't even know whether he had not answered because he had something to hide, or simply because, Ron-like, he had missed the point of the question entirely. So she was back at square one.

Kim thought about the note she had received that morning, placed carefully at her bedside in a long tan envelope. It was addressed to '_Miss Kim Possible_' in flowing, curvy handwriting, and inside, in the same script, was written:

_Betrayal is as the coiling snake, deceit his forked tongue. Lies shine in his deadly eyes and yet he moves as one._

Below this strange verse were several words in stark, black printing:

**Ask your sidekick where he was last night.**

That was all.

And Kim didn't know what to think, or to believe, but she _would_ find out. She didn't know who had written the note, but she would track whoever it was down and get some answers.

She was Kim possible, and she could do anything.

* * *

So not much Rongo goodness in this chapter, I'm afraid. But this chapter was necessary for the story, I think, and I do hope everyone liked it anyway.

I personally like snakes and frequently resent all the unfavorable things they are compared to, (same with Rats and such as well,) but I realized that our mystery person, whose identity some of you may guess, wouldn't have these feelings about them, and neither would Kim, so…there you have it. It made more sense for the story.

Speaking of the story, I am now getting lots of ideas for where the story is going now, which it nice. I will try to update as quickly as I can, and the next chapter, at any rate, should be exciting.

See you all soon!


	13. Confrontation Once Again

LYBCD chap 13  
Disclaimer: I considered hiring Shego to steal the rights to Kim Possible for me, but she charges _way_ too much, so I unfortunately still don't own it. I also got my idea for Drakken's plot in this chapter partly from the webcomic "Order of the Stick" (The attack on Azure City). I don't own that either, although I can certainly imagine Drakken stealing the idea from there and claiming it was his. ;)

Yes! And we have reached chapter thirteen! After the next chapter this story will officially be longer than Return of Bad Boy!

Thank you so much to everyone who read and commented on chapter twelve! You guys are truly awesome. I liked to hear all the ideas everyone had regarding what will happen next and who the mystery note writer is. And, yeah, I deserved the comments on my slow update times as well. ;)

I am going away to Egypt for Christmas with my family, so I really wanted to have this chapter up. Please enjoy, and I'll be back in about three weeks.

PS: I am sorry this is late. I did try to get it up on time, but I had a lot more trouble than I anticipated, and I was really really busy. I hope nobody wants to kill me right now.

* * *

Dedicated to all my reviewers who encouraged me to continue. I want to find out what happens just as much as you!

* * *

The lab was dark, but Shego hardly had time to take two steps inside before Drakken dove to the side and pulled on a large lever, which was lined with small red lights. The room flooded with white light, and Shego shot a half blind glare in the direction of Drakken before her eyes adjusted to the suddenly illuminated room. However, Shego immediately froze at the site that greeted her when her vision cleared. One, solitary thought crossed her mind as she stared. _He is _so_ dead…_

She was face to face with herself.

The other Shego stood calmly before her, head tilted slightly to the side, and eyeing her double with a kind of placid indifference. It took Shego about five seconds to collect herself fully from the shock before she whirled on her blue skinned boss with a snarl.

"_Drakken!_ I warned you; _No clones!_" A blast of green energy followed the words swiftly, and Drakken barely ducked in time.

"No no _no_ Shego! It's not a clone!" he exclaimed desperately.

Shego stopped blasting, but her hands were still raised, glowing with frightening green, and her eyes spoke of death.

"Talk fast," she said.

* * *

"It's Drakken," Wade said apologetically. Kim groaned softly in irritation. The sound was lost in the clamor of students as they gathered various articles from their lockers and headed toward the outside, and temporary freedom, but it didn't matter. Kim's facial expression was poetic. Wade smiled in response, as much as to say 'what did you expect.' It was truly a scenario which happened once a week at the least, inconvenient or not.

Nearby, Ron leant against his locker and tried to look carefree. It wasn't that easy, as the hinges and padlock digging into his back were only slightly less pleasant then his thoughts.

Of course it was Drakken; it was always Drakken. They fought him more than any other villain, although why, Ron wasn't entirely sure. The guy must have absolutely no social life. But none of that changed the fact that Drakken was the last villain in the world Ron wanted to face right now, for one simple reason. Drakken meant Shego, and he did not want to fight Shego.

Scratch that. He didn't want _Kim_ to fight Shego. Ron was fairly certain that he could not watch that again, and he didn't even _really_ know why. He had seen the two of them fighting many times, and it had never worried him, even knowing that Kim could get hurt. He supposed it was because she always had that confident attitude about her that _you_ couldn't help being confident in her as well. But now, he thought of the approaching, inevitable fight between Kim and Shego and…he didn't wantit. He had never been worried about Kim getting hurt, at least not much, but now, suddenly, he worried about Shego. Before, he simply hadn't cared. It was hard to admit it, even to himself, but it was the truth. Shego was the enemy, and if Kim hurt her during a fight, well that just meant it would be a slightly longer increment before they had to face her again.

He had never thought about the actual pain it would cause her, because, once again, she had never really been a person.

_Oh, of course it sounds nasty if you phrase it like that, Ron._

"So how are we getting there Wade?" Kim was asking. Ron saw that she had already removed her immaculate mission clothes from her locker, and reluctantly moved to retrieve his own.

"Usual way," the tech genius said. "I've set you up with a plane, and it should be landing any minute."

_It goes on_. Ron sighed inwardly.

* * *

They parachuted down about half an hour later. It never ceased to amaze Ron how quickly GJ planes traveled, but at the moment that was the last thing on his mind. He kept behind Kim as they headed into the lair, and if she noticed his unaccustomed silence she didn't say anything about it. If he had been thinking properly, Ron might have wondered at this unexpected reprieve, but as it was he was merely grateful at it.

He wasn't stupid, despite what most members of Middleton High faculty and student body believed, and he was not completely oblivious to the signs. Moreover, Shego had outright _told_ him what she wanted from him. He knew he could never give her that, not with his…not with the way he felt about Kim. But he also knew that something _was_ happening between him and Shego. He had only spent one evening with her, and he still knew next to nothing about her past, and about who she really was. And yet, he had enjoyed talking with her. It had been so easy, so simple. Perhaps because he didn't have the tension which existed now between him and Kim, the tension brought about by his constant attempts to not mess everything up, but Shego had been so easy to _talk_ to. They had joked together on the golf course, and during dinner; who knew Shego had a sense of humour? He did, now.

But every time he felt this glow, this feeling of happiness at remembering Shego, his conscious smote him until his chest ached. This was Kim's enemy, and how could he call himself her friend, how could he dream of being something…_more_ than a friend if he kept lying to her, and hiding Shego behind her back like this. He loved Kim. But…why was loving Kim so lonely?

He glanced across at Kim as she hung, suspended from her parachute, and apparently motionless, although her hair moved in the wind. Huh, he was usually terrified of the parachuting part. But this time, extreme terror seemed to have taken a backseat to extreme confusion.

Was it selfish of him that he liked the feeling he got from Shego? He liked feeling _needed_. He liked helping people, and all too often he felt…useless. And worse; often he messed things up rather then improve the situation. And Kim…. He sighed. Kim's reaction to his apology had been so calm, so _resigned._ It was as though this was all she expected of him, as though that was all he was to her. He had tried to change that, but he only seemed to make things worse.

And he had a fear, growing inside him, that she was right.

They landed around the rear part of the lair. Sometimes it seemed to Ron that Drakken actually _wanted_ his lairs to get broken into. If not, then why was the security always so lax around back? And why were the ventilation ducts usually so roomy you could fit _three_ adequately sized people inside. This time was no exception. He and Kim crawled through the ducts, one after the other like a pair of groundhogs, or naked mole-rats. Ron smiled at the mental image. If only they _were_ a couple of small, subterranean mammals, how simple that would make everything. And at least he could rip Josh apart and merely call it defending his territory.

"Come on Ron, we're almost there," Kim whispered back to him. It never ceased to amaze Ron how she could find her way through the mess of tunnels. He had been lost within five minutes of entering. He felt a rush of affection unexpectedly flood through him. She was so good. She always seemed to know the right thing to do, and she was always checking up on him, making sure he was okay, especially on missions. She was his constant, and he didn't want to lose her. He was just lucky to have as much of her as he did.

He followed her, as he always did, and let himself bask in her wake.

* * *

He was here.

Shego cursed herself for once again feeling like some bubbly pre-teen on her first date. She had caught a glimpse of the two of them as they strayed briefly into the electronic eye of one of the security cameras. They were clearly trying not to be seen, and they disappeared again almost immediately. Drakken hadn't seen them, only she had. Carefully, she moved over so that she could watch the side of the lair they were most likely to appear, and so that she was out of sight from that area.

Of course, he wasn't here for _her_. He was here because Possible was here. He had to follow her around, and 'have her back' as he would say.

However, despite the circumstances, she was looking forward to seeing him again. She was inordinately glad that she would be fighting Kim. Ron could handle Drakken and his toughs, so long as he managed to stay focused. What she really wanted to do was to talk to him, to find out if he had enjoyed their outing together as much as she had. She thought he had, but she still wanted to hear it from his lips. But of course that was impossible. It was more important than ever that she maintain her disguise. If Kim even suspected than she was sunk. Not that she couldn't handle the Princess if it came to a fight, but that wasn't what she was worried about. If Kim told Ron to stay away from her, he would. Game over.

A faint _clank_ came from one of the overhead vents. _Ah, Kimmie_, Shego thought, amused, _always with the vents_. If she actually cared about taking over the world she would have long ago told Drakken to scale them down so humans couldn't fit inside, although at least the way things were she always knew where they were likely to come from. Drakken was talking again, but she wasn't really listening. Sometimes she thought he just talked to hear himself, not expecting or needing a response from her. It made her feel amused and…strangely useless. What was she doing here, really? What was she gaining? Safety. But what was her safety costing her?

She never had a chance to answer the thought, not that she had an answer anyway. At that moment the grating flew off a vent slightly to the side of the area she had been watching, and two familiar figures sprang out and into the room.

"Kim Possible!" Drakken exclaimed.

* * *

Ron glanced across at him with a raised eyebrow. Why was he always so surprised? This was practically a weekly occurrence. Kim stepped forward, as if on cue.

"Nice try, Drakken!" she exclaimed with a toss of her hair.

_I think I've seen this episode_, Ron thought idly. He glanced around the large chamber, taking everything in. In addition to the clutter of throbbing machinery and the eerie green glow which radiated from several vents in the floor, the room was decorated with a dark red colour-scheme accented with black. It screamed 'villain-cliché' with a megaphone. Drakken never could manage to be original, despite his flaunted 'genius.' However, Ron's gaze was arrested almost instantly by the sight of three identical Shegos, standing together impassively at the left side of the chamber.

_Well, that's new_, Ron mused internally.

Kim saw the three Shegos almost at the same time as Ron, and it was clearly a surprise at her as well. Nevertheless, she slipped easily into a fighting stance.

"Shego!" Drakken exclaimed.

The first Shego rolled her eyes, the second one snorted, and the third one smirked slowly. Then the three of them allowed their hands to come alive with green plasma, and charged Kim. Kim charged as well, and the four of them darted around each other, kicking and punching. The Shegos fired plasma blasts, but Kim managed to dodge all of them, in spite of her multiple assailants. Several times, in fact, the blasts just barely missed, and Ron was amazed that Kim escaped. However, if the blasts failed to connect, the same could not be said for other things. Feet and fists, both those of Kim and her assailants, found their marks more than once, and Ron heard grunts and snarls as the combatants darted nimbly about the lair.

Ron's heart was in his throat, but for which person, he did not know. He didn't know which the real Shego was; they seemed identical as far as he could see, but he knew he didn't want her to get hurt. He didn't want her hurt, and he didn't want her hurting Kim, but, as par for the course lately, what he wanted was not even considered. He might have kept watching them, but a chittering from his pocket reminded him what he should be doing. Drakken was working on some massive red and black machine, and seemed to have completely forgotten about him.

Ron slipped off as quietly as he could, but his mind lingered in the fight which carried on viciously behind him.

* * *

Kim ducked under a punch and seized one green and black arm. She threw her assailant over her head and kicked out almost immediately. The kick was a solid one, and the woman went flying. Kim heard a screeching of metal that set her teeth on edge. She glanced over and saw that one leg of the duplicate Shego had been twisted and almost severed. Wires sparked and writhed like living things in new space, and the duplicate stumbled slightly, arms and legs twitching spasmodically. Kim smiled confidently. It was always nice to know what you were up against.

"Looks like there's just two of you now," she taunted, turning to face the remaining Shegos. A plasma blast caught her in the back with full force and slammed her into the hard, red floor. She felt her shirt catch on fire and screamed in surprise and pain.

"Well, and there's also me," a familiar voice said. "That a problem for you, Kimmie?"

Kim glared as a new Shego, the real one, she was certain, sauntered into view. She didn't have time to respond to the gibe, however, as the two remaining robots had taken the opportunity to lay into her once more with punches and kicks and she had her hands full simply blocking their attacks until she could regain her footing.

"FYI," Shego said with a smirk, "You never would have dodged all those plasma attacks if my friends here hadn't been trying to miss you. Their power was all an illusion. Although I guess you've realized now that mine isn't."

* * *

Shego was having _far_ too much fun. She ignited her hands and watched Kim struggle too her feet under the barrage of blows from the two robots. The brat was quite obviously in pain, not to mention seriously ticked off now. She smirked. _Excellent. _Even the great Kim Possible was difficult to block the attacks of herself as well as two robots, especially when she had already been fighting for a while. The robots were not as powerful or as good as Shego, not to mention the fact that they lacked her powers, of course, but there had been three of them initially, and Shego had been sure to give them a little time to tire her rival out. That shot had been very satisfying. Usually she couldn't get a hit like that on the Princess, and this fight she had managed two already. Of course, she wouldn't have been able to if it wasn't for Drakken's robots; she was the first person to admit that Kim was _almost_ her equal in combat, and their fights were usually fairly evenly matched. It didn't matter now though…

Shego's train of thought vanished as she saw an opening in Kim's defenses, and she lashed out, feeling the satisfying thump as her foot struck yielding flesh. She backed up a pace, ducking under one of Kim's fists as she did so, and readied herself for another attack.

"Shego! Leave her alone!"

Shego's stomach sank all the way down to her feet and she sprang nimbly out of combat while the robots slid in to cover her escape. She didn't look at them, or Kim. She turned to face Ron with a stoic face, although her heart was rapidly joining her stomach in its new abode. He stood, in front of her now, tense and rigid. His face was drawn tight, but his eyes had that spark that she had seen in them before several times, and most recently in the cell when he had first looked at her that way. It was not as strong now as it had been then, but it _was_ unmistakable.

He was angry.

Well, of course he was angry! He was in love with Kim. He _worshiped her_. And she, Shego, was in the process of beating her up in an unfair fight, simply because… He had every right to be angry, and yet how could he expect anything to change between Kim and her just because he was trying to be her friend?

And of course, she had to be a closemouthed, distrustful fool and not explain to him. There was no reason for him to understand. He just couldn't.

"How are you going to make me, Sidekick?" She snarled, falling into the role far more easily than she had expected. But then, she had been doing it forever, there was just more at stake now than she could ever remember there being.

"I'll fight you myself," Ron said quietly.

Shego had always hated déjà vu.

* * *

Cliff hanger! Kinda.

So, like I said, a really hard chapter to write, especially the beginning. This wasn't helped by the fact that my school has thrown a bunch of work at me. (My head has a bump now…)

The fight between Kim and the Shego robots was particularly annoying, mostly because it was just difficult to write. Not my best fight scene, (That would be in either Return of Bad Boy or Darkness: Master of Shadows, but the fight isn't really what's important in this chapter, I think. I may go back and work on it again, but I was really tired of chafing at this chapter, and so I had to get it out. I quite like the rest of it though.

Sorry you didn't get to hear from our mystery note-writer in this chapter. Next one, probably. I know what happens next in that area, but I just couldn't fit it in. Nobody forget about him/her now!

Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter, and the next one will be out soon after I get back from my trip, before I get swamped with schoolwork again. I do know what happens in it for the most part, so it shouldn't take too long.

Please direct all comments and rants to that darling review button down there and I'll get back to you. ;)


	14. Come With Me Now

LYBCD chap 14

Disclaimer: I own an obsession and a lot of ideas. That's pretty much it.

So sorry for the wait. I was really focusing on updating my Fillmore fic "Darkness: Master of Shadows" because of the plethora of ideas I had for it, and so that really took up my writing time. That and school. Bleck. ;)

Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed, and a special thanks to GorillaKing1990 who got me back on track with writing. You rock. :) I loved to hear what everyone thought about the last chapter, and I'm glad it was liked despite the fight scene.

But enough waiting. Here it is, and enjoy!

* * *

Dedicated to my school. I may the work, but I am going to really miss the classes when they're finished. They have given me more ideas for stories than I can remember.

* * *

Ron didn't want to fight Shego. He hadn't even really decided to fight her. There just wasn't anything else he could think of to do. Kim was in trouble. Everything else was secondary.

He watched Shego's hands clench, her face harden, and found himself curious about what she would do. Their last fight had forced her into showing her true feelings about him. She had seemed almost remorseful about what she had done. It had made him feel…strange.

What did she feel now? He hoped she didn't think he was doing this to test her or anything silly like that. If she knew as much about him as she claimed to than she should have known that he wouldn't just stand there while she beat Kim in an unfair fight.

"Ron, what do you think you're doing?" Kim demanded breathlessly, fending off one robot's kick. "You're going to get hurt."

Ron didn't answer. He couldn't. It made him so happy to think that Kim was worried for him, but it smote him with shame when he realized that she didn't think he could take care of himself, let alone help her. Perhaps she was right. He couldn't protect her, but there was no one else here. But he didn't say anything, and he didn't look at his friend, he just kept staring at Shego, although even he didn't know what he was waiting for. Shego opened her mouth finally, but before she could speak a blaring alarm cut across her, and she glanced up in surprise. All of the lights in the lab began flashing red as smoke billowed out of the control board of Drakken's latest creation. The mad scientist let out a shriek, and dove at the board, desperately pressing buttons.

Ron had his back to Kim, and now he smiled at Shego slightly. He was glad that he had finished messing with the doomsday device before he had noticed Kim's predicament. Tongues of flame had begun to lick tentatively at the red and black surfaces. Shego rolled her eyes theatrically.

"Next time, losers!" she announced, before running over to the smoking machine and snagging her employer by the back of his lab coat. Shego tossed Drakken nonchalantly over one shoulder and darted down one of the hallways. By the time Kim and Ron had caught up to them, the red hover car was already rising out of its hanger and away.

Ron watched the craft rise with a strange mix of feelings. He was glad that there wasn't going to be any more fighting for the present, but at the same time he was aware of the unwelcome knowledge that they were on opposite sides. Sooner or later they would meet in violence, and what would happen then?

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night. The rain came down in torrents. It beat against the window with a ferocity that seemed misplaced in the being of a simple weather phenomenon. The wind whistled through the trees, mournful and restless, as though it wanted to rip them from their roots. Every so often, the house shook.

Ron sat and watched the rain. He was supposed to be working on a book report due at the end of the week, but his mind was too full of dark thoughts to concentrate on anything as trivial as school. It was true that he generally put off his schoolwork, but this time he felt that he was justified. Not that his teachers would see it that way. He could just imagine the excuse. _Oh please Mr. Adler, I didn't get the assignment finished because I love my best friend, but she doesn't love me back, and just recently I realized that her arch enemy isn't such a bad person and so I want to be friends with _her _as well, but I feel like I'm betraying my best friend, and so I have to keep everything a secret, and I feel awful about it, and…_

He groaned and passed one hand over his face. Everything was so confused right now. _As opposed to before?_ He thought suddenly. It was true that his life hadn't been what you would call simple for a long time now, but lately it seemed as though things were coming to a head, and he wasn't entirely sure whether that was a good thing. At least the way life was now he felt…not _safe_ exactly, but comfortable and familiar.

Familiar. Like the pain he was feeling tonight? Kim had gone out with Josh again tonight. He didn't know where, or he might have tried to sneak in wearing a fake beard or something. At least, he might have done that a week or so ago. Truth was that he didn't think he could face Kim tonight. He was feeling guilty. Kim had a nasty burn from her fight with Shego, and the other Shego…things, and here Ron was being friends with Shego behind his friend's back. And earlier, at Drakken's lair, although he had stood up for Kim, he hadn't wanted to fight Shego. He didn't want to hurt her, and he didn't want her to have to choose whether to hurt him.

Everything was so confused, and it was all his fault, as usual.

Perhaps it was because he was so caught up in his musings that Ron failed to hear the light touch of feet upon his window sill. He just went on thinking. A slender hand reached out and raised the window from outside. It creaked as it rose, and Ron was pulled rudely from his thoughts. He turned, and there was Shego crouching on the window sill. She was clinging to the window sill with one hand, and had just tapped on the glass with the other, and as usual she looked perfectly at ease.

Ron couldn't think for properly for a moment. His mind simply spun. The sight really didn't seem real. All he knew was that this was the best thing that had happened tonight. Then thought came rushing back. He scrambled to open the window, tripped over his own feet and went sprawling.

"Gah… Shego! You're here!" He pushed himself to his feet once again, and went to open the window, all the way berating himself silently. He couldn't even get across the room without tripping.

Shego slipped inside as though she did this every day which, Ron was forced to remind himself, she probably did. She just didn't seem like the same person who he'd last seen beating up his best friend. Shego closed the window again, shutting out the rain, and glanced around his room. She looked comfortable, but a little hesitant, as though afraid she was intruding. And…she wasn't wearing her uniform again. Instead, she was dressed in a black exercise outfit picked out with electric blue highlights, and a pair of comfortable shoes. The outfit looked new, and fit her perfectly, and it made her look, well, very attractive certainly, but also…natural, as though this was how she _should_ look. Only, even Ron wasn't sure what he meant by that. Her hair was hanging loose, and looked slightly damp, as though she had showered just a little while ago. Or maybe it was just the rain.

She gave him a half smile; not quite a smirk, but playful.

"Sorry about popping in like this," she said. "But I'm really not a phone person." Her smile widened, and Ron felt his own lips curving upward in response. Shego crossed over to Ron's desk and sat down in his chair, spinning it first, deftly, so she could rest her feet on the desktop. "It just occurred to me," she continued after a moment, "that it was my turn to take you somewhere, so I decided to come and see if you'd like to get away from your homework for a while.

"You have no idea," Ron said feelingly. "But how did you know I'd be here?" Shego shrugged one shoulder. It was funny, but if he didn't know how self confident she was, Ron would have thought that she was embarrassed.

"My surveillance of the Princess showed she was out at some art show, and I just figured you'd be up here working since you weren't out with her." She very kindly avoided the word 'date', but Ron guessed that that was the real reason why Shego knew he would be up here in his room, alone.

Well, not quite alone.

An angry squeaking shrilled through the room suddenly, and Ron turned to find that Rufus was standing in the doorway with his whiskers bristling, and was probably about to attack.

"Ah, Rufus, _no_! Ron darted over to the door and scooped up the quivering mole-rat before he had a chance to do anything. "It's okay buddy," he crooned gently. "She's a friend, remember?" Rufus chittered skeptically. "Yes I'm serious," Ron retorted, colouring slightly. "I haven't been making anything up, and I haven't been brainwashed." Another chatter. "She's _perfectly_ nice once you get to know her." Rufus was quieter now. He was still uneasy, Ron could tell, but he was going to give Shego a chance. Ron looked up, and saw Shego watching him with one raised eyebrow.

"You really _can_ understand him, can't you?" she asked.

Ron nodded. "Yeah."

"But I thought he could speak English."

"He can." Ron felt faintly defensive. He always felt defensive about Rufus. "It's just that it's hard to pronounce, and he doesn't like to do it when he's upset or mad at me." He smiled a little. "He's okay. He's just not used to you yet." Shego smiled back, small smile, but a sweet one. It was as though he had done something right.

"Sorry about that, Rufus," she said then, addressing the rodent for the first time. "I'll try not to surprise you next time." Rufus cocked his head slightly, gauging her motives, then chittered a hesitant acceptance.

"Hey Rufus," Ron said. Shego's taking me out somewhere. You're welcome to come with us. The mole-rat considered again, than nodded. Ron had a feeling that Rufus was only coming to keep an eye on him, but he was glad anyway. Maybe Shego and Rufus could get to know each other a little.

"Come on Ron," Shego called from the window. The rain seemed to have slackened slightly, but was still beating against the pain, and Shego was waiting with one hand poised ready to open it so that not too much rain should get in.

_Of course we're going out the window_, Ron mused silently. His parents were downstairs, and would probably not be pleased to see Shego. And wasn't _that_ the understatement of the night.

"Come on, little buddy," he said cheerfully. He slipped Rufus into his pocket and crossed to join Shego by the window. She lifted the pain and motioned him through, following deftly when he was perched on one of the tree branches outside. The window _snicked_ shut, and Ron felt excitement tickle at the back of his neck and down his arms. It was delicious to be sneaking out on this wild, wet night. The wind whispered through the tree branches and showered them with drops. The tree's trunk was wet and cold through his shirt, but the leaves still offered some shelter. Shego climbed down the tree, and he followed fairly easily. This was _his _tree after all. He'd been climbing it since he was six. He grinned at her when they reached the ground, trying to express the thrill he was feeling. And she smiled back; a smile that was almost a laugh. She reached into her pocket and drew out a small, black object. He heard a soft clicking noise, and then a small area about ten feet in front of them began to glow softly. It looked like…a floating door?

"Cloaking device," Shego explained when she saw his look. "I always cloak the hovercraft when I'm out somewhere." Now that Ron was looking for it, he noticed that a large space of grass behind the glowing door was perfectly flat, and that the rain was forcibly stopped by nothing about ten feet from the ground. The craft must be quite large. Larger than a car, at any rate.

Shego swung the door open with a kind of casual flourish, and Ron looked with interest at the interior which had suddenly appeared. _Coolest craft ever_, he decided internally. He entered into a large area, upholstered in dark blue, and took his seat in one of the black pilot seats. Shego sat next to him and began to adjust the knobs and leavers on the incomprehensible dashboard in front of them.

"Where are we going, Shego?" Ron asked suddenly. He wondered why he hadn't thought to ask before this.

Shego smirked at him, almost like her old self. "It's a surprise," she said. Then she flipped a switch, and Ron's stomach descended as the hover car rose smoothly but way too unexpectedly. "Just relax and enjoy the ride."

* * *

"The sculpture to your right was designed by Edward Grant, and entitled 'Knock'. It represents man's confusion in the face of adversity."

Kim glanced from the spectacled tour guide over to the mass of bronze triangles and was glad that it at least represented confusion about _something_. That at any rate she understood. It wasn't really that she couldn't understand modern art; it was simply that she had no interest in it. As far as she could tell, it pretty much meant whatever you said it did. Besides, she had never been that interested in art, let alone the kind that took very little skill and less talent.

She wished Josh had taken her somewhere else tonight, or at least that she could tell him how boring she found these shows, but he always had so much fun at them. Art was such a large part of his life that Kim sometimes found herself worrying that he might want to break up with her if he learned how she felt. It would make these outings much more enjoyable he shared a small part of her dislike. Then they could giggle together about what the works looked like to them, and speculate on how much the artists must have been paid. She and Ron had gotten through many a school field trip that way.

The tour group was moving, and Kim reluctantly drifted with them. It looked like they were heading into a portrait gallery. Swell.

Josh turned back to her, his eyes alight. "Come on Kim," he said impatiently. "Some of my favorite paintings are in here!"

"Sure Josh," Kim said, forcing a smile. "I'm coming." She followed, inwardly sighing. At least the tour was almost over. Then maybe they could find a nice place for dinner.

And in fact, the rest of the evening did go well. The dinner following the art show was quite nice, and Josh was his usual sweet self. He did talk about the show, and she had to pretend that she had enjoyed it as well, but other than that, Kim enjoyed herself very much. It was nice to have an ordinary date after all the interruptions which had been happening recently.

It was close to eleven when Josh dropped her off at her house, and Kim felt extremely happy. Even her father peaking at them through the window didn't bother her. It had been a good day, and at that moment, it seemed likely that tomorrow would be even better.

* * *

The Hovercraft descended smoothly toward an elegant building designed with Grecian pillars and a roof of red tile. Shego glanced over to where Ron sat with his hands pressed against the window, his excited face inches from the glass, and she wanted to chuckle. What was it about him that made her feel so relaxed, so free? She had gone through years in the public eye without showing a single unguarded emotion, and yet whenever she was with him she kept catching herself laughing, or talking about something small from her past. In a way it was good, because he was getting to know her, and that was what she wanted, but there was still some part of her that insisted that she was leaving herself open, and that was a dangerous thing to do.

She had been worried that she would be met at the window by a retraction of his offer, after what she had done to Kim. She could not have blamed him, but she wasn't sure she could stop hating Kim, even if she wanted to. And it wasn't just because Kim had her perfect life. It wasn't just because Kim had Ron. But how could she explain it to him, when she could barely admit it to herself. What's the matter, Shego? Are you afraid he'll drop you if he knows you hate your mother? _Shut up._ But it's true, isn't it? Kim is so like your mother; so confident and flawless. _Shut up!_ He couldn't understand, and she couldn't try to make him. So she had almost stayed home tonight, or gone out somewhere alone. Except that she wanted to see him, even if he was angry or…hurt. She had needed to take the chance.

And he _had_ been unhappy when she had looked through the window at him, but now he was so happy, so excited. He had been glad to see her. She thought about how he had been acting tonight, and it struck her, according to him, they were already friends, despite the fact that he still knew very little about her. And she remembered what he had said when explaining Rufus' outburst. 'He's not used to you _yet'_. Yet. That word seemed to hint at a future. Ron was confident that Rufus would have time to get to know her. Or maybe she was being too hopeful, but then, that was the other affect he had on her.

And now was a time to enjoy herself. Tonight they were just two friends without a larger care in the world.

"It's awesome!" Ron announced, pulling his face away from the glass for a moment. "What is this place?"

"The Elysium Spa." Shego brought the hover car down gently and landed in a copse of trees where no one would unexpectedly run into it.

"A spa?" Ron asked in dismay. "Isn't that where you get, like, mud facials and stuff?"

Shego laughed. "Yes," she said. "But this particular one also has state of the art gyms, a full size pool, indoor hockey rink and huge baths, to name just a few of their amenities. I come here all the time."

"In a spa?" Ron shook his head. "No way."

"Sure," Shego said. Her smirk was more teasing now. "What's the matter Ron?" she challenged. "Afraid of a little Epson salts? Besides, it's my turn to take you out somewhere. Don't you trust me?" She almost regretted saying it. Did he trust her? She could so easily be leading him into a trap.

"Of course I do," Ron said ruefully. "It's those creepy spa ladies I don't trust." He sighed, and Shego could tell he was gearing himself up, half playfully. "Fine, I'll give it a try," he said then. "But if I get healthy I'm blaming you."

"Fair enough." Shego lead the way out of the hover car and made certain that it was completely invisible. The rain had almost completely stopped now, except for a few feathery touches on her face, and the landscape was drenched in watery moonlight. They crossed the lawn like two shadows, almost invisible themselves.

It was true that Shego had been to the spa many times, usually on her days off, but she had never ever taken anyone else here, and it made her slightly nervous to see Ron standing next to her in the velvety entrance hall, shaking the damp from his hair. But this was a place where she was able to relax, and to be herself for the most part, and she wanted to share it with him. She had never used the pool or the gyms much, because she had never had anyone to use them with. She generally just came here after her own work outs to get massages or other relaxing treatment. But she had often wished she had someone to play here with, and if there was one person who was worth the risk, it was Ron.

Shego flashed her pass to the desk attendant and successfully got Ron in as a guest. She felt a little glow of satisfaction as she did. It was the first time she had ever used hat privilege.

"So where too first?" Ron asked.

"Well, I've always wanted to try out the badminton courts," Shego offered with an impish smile.

Ron smiled back. "I have to warn you, I really suck at badminton."

"So do I," Shego countered, which was true, not because she lacked the skill for the game, but simply because she hadn't played it in many years. But it was still one of her favorite sports.

"Then lay on, Macduff." Ron bowed with an elaborate flourish and offered his arm playfully.

"I certainly intend to." Shego curtsied back. In general, she would never be caught dead behaving like this, but with Ron she didn't feel silly. She didn't even think about it. "Loser buys ice cream," she challenged instead, and as they walked together down the corridor with its blue green carpet and faint smell of chlorine, she was sure of only one thing; Ron was going down.

* * *

Thanks for reading guys, and thank you very much for being so patient. I promise I will not take so long for the next one. ;)

I have a feeling this chapter needs some more editing for grammar, but I want to get it up, so I will edit it afterward, and post a fixed version.

Tell me what you think. If I'm putting in too many inner thoughts, do let me know. I like to explore people's feelings this way, but I don't want the story too be boring, and I tend to like my own writing, so it's difficult sometimes to tell if I'm being too detailed. I also have trouble working Rufus into the story, which you can probably tell by now. I don't know what it is. I just tend to forget about him. It could have something to do with the fact that I find him really difficult to write for. Hope he's not too awkward in this chapter Thanks in advance everyone. ;)

See you all next time!


	15. Growing Comfortable

LYBCD chap 15

Disclaimer: You all know the drill. I don't own Kim Possible. Now let me distract you from this depressing thought with some Ron/Shego goodness! ;)

Here's chapter 15 for everybody! I am beyond moved by all the reviews I have gotten so far for this story. I'm having a lot of fun writing it, and it makes me so happy to see so many Rongo fans.

I'm sorry for how late this is. My life is busy, but that's no excuse. I am trying to improve in that regard.

Enjoy!

* * *

Dedicated to literature, which gives me ideas for fanfics. ;)

* * *

The corridor was wide and painted soft gray with an interesting swirl pattern. The floor was thickly carpeted in soothing blue, and Ron couldn't hear his steps as he walked. That was how soft it was. Ron wondered absently just how exclusive this place was. A spa. He had never even been to a spa before. This place was more like a palace.

He had been lagging behind slightly, marveling, and now he sped up to catch up with Shego on the sound-muffling carpet.

"So what kind of a place is this?" he asked.

"Exclusive." Shego quirked her lips into a satisfied smirk.

Ron chuckled. Even _he_ could tell that much. "No, I mean, what kind of place is a spa? I've never been in one."

Shego looked surprised for a second, and then smirked again. She was probably putting two and two together. "Well, I told you most of it in the plane," she said. "It has everything. Do you know what the name means?"  
Ron frowned "The elis…" he muttered, trying to remember what she had called it.  
"Elysium," Shego corrected with a smile.

Ron shook his head.

"It's the name for the ancient Greek afterlife. The good afterlife, that is." She smirked. Ron looked at her quizzically. "It was kind of like heaven," she elaborated after a moment. "Only you had to be really amazing to reach it. So naming this spa after it is rather fitting in a way."

"Why," Ron asked with a smile of his own. "Because it's exclusive and ridiculously expensive?"

"Well that," Shego said thoughtfully, "and it has some amazing amenities."

There was an annoyed chittering from Ron's pocket suddenly, and the blond boy flushed bright red.

"Don't be ridiculous!" he retorted, sounding more than a little embarrassed.

"What did he say?" Shego asked, half laughing.

"Absolutely nothing," Ron said firmly to the pocket. His face was still red, and he seemed to be holding his breath, perhaps in an attempt to find out just how darkly someone could flush before they passed out. Shego suddenly wished she could understand the mole-rat. She had never seen Ron this embarrassed. He always seemed to be so comfortable with everything, including the varied insults she had heard directed at him by his peers on several occasions. Just what exactly could penetrate his cool exterior?

She smiled to herself. Ron was still floundering helplessly and Shego had the sudden desire to help him out. Perhaps a subject change was in order. Fortunately, a logical subject was ready to hand.

* * *

Shego unzipped a small pocket on the outside of her thigh and pulled out several plastic cards. She sorted through them and then handed one to Ron, who stared at it blankly. "It's a credit card," Shego said with a smile. "You're going to need some new clothes or you'll have nothing to change into when you're all hot and sweaty."

Ron shook his head. "I can't take this. You're already taking me out to this spa place. I can't let you pay for new clothes for me as well." He tried to give the card back, but Shego put up her hand and wouldn't take it. She was still smiling.

"Tonight is my treat," she said. "You should get yourself some exercise clothes, and possibly a swimsuit. And I have a membership here with a guest pass, so I didn't spend any extra to get you in."

Ron quirked his lips into a half smile. "If you're sure," he said. He was still hesitant, but nevertheless slipped the card into his pocket.

"I'm sure." Shego smiled again. "Now go on. The change rooms are just ahead. I'll meet you at the badminton courts – They're down the hall and to the right. You'll see the sign." She paused for a moment, then as Ron was about to turn away she smirked. "Don't keep me waiting too long, Stoppable," she said.

"Hakuna Matata," he said with a mock salute. Then he walked away rather quickly, and ducked into the men's change room rather faster than his normal pace. Once inside, he touched a hand to the burning heat in his cheeks. Hopefully she hadn't seen it. But the funny thing was, Ron didn't even know why he was blushing.

He shook it off rather irritably, and focused on the room in front of him. It was beautiful. The whole spa was beautiful, and the changing room was no exception. The floor was made of dark gray tile covered with thick rush mats. Shining steel combination lockers lined each wall with another row down the center, placed next to the dark wooden benches, and the rest of the soft blue coloured wall space was decorated with a combination of tasteful prints, and small posters showing the different amenities available to the spa's customer.

Ron found the racks of excersize clothes easily; there was a helpful sign. He was a little nervous, simply because the clothes were so nice. He felt as though he had wandered into a club banana outlet, except that these clothes were even nicer. Club banana, after all, was really just Smarty Mart dressed up for the snootier shopper, whereas here he got the feeling that all of the customers were both wealthy, and descerning enough to recagnize quality.

Ron hesitently thumbed through the racks of streachy, slick fabrics, before finally choosing a pair of long, black and red shorts and a matching t-shirt. After another minute of searching he also selected a pair of navy blue swim trunks. Shego was right after all; he did need something to wear. The fabric slipped over his hands like silk, and the clothes didn't even have a listed price. There was a distinct air of 'if you have to ask…' about the whole arrangement. It made Ron uneasy, simply because it was so different from what he was used to. As he pulled out Shego's credit card to swipe it through the automated system, he glanced down at the card; at an attractive photo of Shego with her hair pulled back from her face, and at….

He smiled, and finished paying. Then he slipped the card back into his pocket and headed over to the lockers with his new clothes. He didn't want to keep his friend waiting for him.

* * *

When Ron arrived at the badminton courts, Shego was already inside the first of the large, glass sided rooms. She had been warming up in preperation for the game. True, this wasn't exactly going to be a compeditive game, but she always limbered up before she exersized. To be honest, she had been a little nervous about asking Ron to go to the spa with her. At the miniature golf course, they had been surrounded by groups and families, and they had been in a public place. Here, it was just the two of them. There were other patrons, of course, but not many at this time of the night. The Elysium spa was open twenty-four hours, but the customers who arrived this late generally prefered privicy.

Shego was glad they had started out with a game of badminton. It would keep them on opposite sides of the court, and seperated by the net while she figured out how to act.

Just where was this shyness coming from? She was never shy around men. But of course, this was Ron, not just a man. Not to mention the fact that he only wanted to be friends, and Shego hadn't had a friend in a long time.

She was currently streaching her back, supporting herself on her feet and hands, and she let out a frustrated groan that was only partially masked by her hair, which was falling over her face in a dark waterfall.

"You okay?"

Ron. Shego just bearly avoided an undignified scramble to her feet. Instead, she forced her body into a graceful and controled rise. _Perfect, just perfect_, she congradulated herself sarcastically. _Next thing you know he'll walk in on you talking to yourself._

"I'm fine," she said aloud. "I was just streaching." She finished straitening up, and looked over at Ron. He had changed into a pare of long shorts which reached to just above his knees, were black with a thick red stripe, like a slash extending from the top to the bottom. He was also wearing a matching t-shirt; black, with red rings around the collar and the ends of the sleeves. He looked good. The clothes fit him well and made him look vibrant, almost dynamic. Shego felt a sudden thrill of joy that he had come here with her, to this place where she always came alone. For tonight he was hers, even if it was only as a friend.

She noticed that he seemed a little self conscious, so she smiled.

"Looking good, Stoppable," she said. Ron smiled back, regaining some of his easy-going manner. He held her card with one hand and, as she reached forward to take it, he quirked an eyebrow at her, still smiling.

"Twila Engaurdin," he said. "It's a pretty name."

Shego snorted slightly, feeling a little annoyed that she hadn't realized he would notice that.

"It's not my name," she said. She took the card from Ron and slipped it back into her pocket, zipping it closed as she did so. "It means 'twilight' in French," she continued after a moment. I had to choose a name that people would know me as, and which isn't associated with a criminal. Shego is the only name I have that's really mine."

Shego stopped talking, and suddenly became aware of the silence in the room. This was the first time she had referred to herself as a criminal when talking to Ron. They both knew that was what she was, but as long as they hadn't mentioned it, Shego felt that the two realities were separate from each other and secure in themselves. Now they had spilled into each other. She hadn't really meant to say that.

"I often wanted to choose my own name," Ron said. He smiled again, crossing his arms jauntily over his new black shirt. "Twila _is _very pretty. Were you in France when you chose it?"

Shego's chest swelled and she felt a happy ache deep inside. Once again, he had given her an out on a subject she was having trouble with. She hated that she needed one, but his tone and his casual question seemed to tell her that he didn't mind, and she knew that he would wait until she was ready to talk, however long that would take. It gave her a special, secret thrill that he was willing to be here that long, with her. As usual, however, she masked her feelings.

"Actually no," she said lightly, bending down to pick up the badminton rackets and the container of shuttlecocks off of the floor. "I read it in a book," she continued, handing a racket to Ron. "I can't even remember what book it was, but the name stayed with me, clearly, because when I had to come up with an alias for myself, that was the one I thought of." Ron made a few practice swings with his racket.

"And Engaurdin?" he asked.

"I just made it up."

"I figured." Ron smiled again, as if at some secret realization, but he didn't say anything else. Instead, he headed over to his side of the net. Shego waited until he had retrieved Rufus from one cavernous pocket, and place him off to the side on one of the smooth, cushioned benches. Rufus chittered something that Shego couldn't understand, and Ron his head in reply, chuckling. Shego marveled once again at the easy companionship, and equality, exhibited by the pair. Rufus really wasn't Ron's pet, he was his best friend.

Ron crossed to the centre of the net, racket in hand, and grinned at Shego.

"Ready when you are!" he called. Shego smiled back, allowing a playful smirk to flicker into being. She chose a shuttlecock from the several she had brought, and held it casually between two fingers, sizing up her opponent. Just because they were friends didn't mean she had to go easy on him. Then she flicked the shuttlecock into the air and brought her racket sweeping down in a fierce overhand serve. She knew he had it before his own racket so much as moved, and his returning strike was equally forceful. She smirked again as she followed the shuttlecock's arc with her eyes, muscles already tensing for the return, and for a while, it seamed, she was able to put aside her musings and just let her adrenaline carry her, and her mind was blissfully in the moment.

* * *

"So this girl is just standing there, staring at us, and you could tell she was kind of disgusted, and then Felix says 'Oh, I can be smooth', but as he was saying it, the rest of his taco just sort of fell out of the shell with this kind of wet squish." Ron mimed the action with his hands and Shego chuckled at the image.

"So what happened?" she asked.

"Well, the girl hightailed it out of there as if we were exuding some kind of noxious gas. We never saw her again." Ron chuckled himself, remembering. He leaned back against the pool's edge and let himself slide in until his chin was just touching the surface. The strong smell of chlorine tickled his nostrils. The leisure pool was completely empty so late in the evening. There were a few incredibly muscled men swimming laps in the pool next door, but they weren't even audible through the thick and spotlessly clean glass separating the pools. Ron wondered idly if servents came in every night and cleaned the windows. They were all so clear he often forgot that there was actual glass there, and not empty space.

The leisure pool itself was an elegant construction of white and sea-green tile. It was fairly deep and pleasantly cool, while still being warm enough so that you could swim for a long time without becoming chilly. Tall palms, real trees rather than plastic, decorated the edges of the pool, along with sculpted cliffs of quartze-shot rock, polished and cut with many steps, seats and small pools and channels of trickling water. The soft splashing from a larger waterfall could be heard faintly in the silence.

Ron glanced sideways at Shego where she lounged against the pool's wall next to him. He wasn't blind, and he knew she was gorgeous. Of course, he had known that since the first time he had seen her, during their very first encounter with Drakken. But what struck him was how she looked now. She was wearing an elegant, black one-piece. The straps were lacy and intricately woven. Several silver threads had also been worked into the lacy section, which made it glint softly when caught by the light. The suit was obviously very high quality.

Ron had been a little surprised, initially, that Shego had worn a one-piece, rather than a bikini, but he had decided that she had likely chosen this swimsuit so that he wouldn't feel uncomfortable. She had clearly realized that he wanted to keep things friendly, but nothing more, and was making an effort. For him.

Her long, dark hair hung down around her face. It had been wet, but was drying slowly now that they were no longer actively swimming. The lower half of her hair was hanging into the pool, and the tips waved softly when she moved or laughed, like some dark variety of sea grass. The green tint to her skin was more noticeable when set against the colour scheme of the pool, and it made her look exotic and mysterious, like a mermaid raised from the deep, except that she also seemed so normal. She was perfectly relaxed as she lounged beside him, and she looked so carefree, just like the other night at the golf course. She was one of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen, especially times when, like now, she could be a normal person, and so could he. Ron didn't blush, but he had to dismiss the thought from his mind rather rapidly.

She had noticed him watching her, and smiled softly. And the smile was simply that; a smile. He saw that she was happy and relaxed. She was enjoying herself, and there was nothing more too it.

"Thank you for coming out with me tonight Ron," Shego said. She spoke in a low voice, but Ron thought that this was more to avoid ruining the quiet atmosphere than out of any need to hide or whisper.

"I had fun," Ron answered in the same tone. "I knew I would," he continued after a moment. "It didn't really matter what we were doing. You're lots of fun to hang out with when you're not trying to beat me up.

"Sure," Shego said. "You're just saying that because you finally won at Badminton." Her voice was light, but her eyes spoke to him.

"Barely," he conceded. "But yeah, I figured I had you after the first three games." Shego laughed softly, and then they were still again, simply being there, listening to the silence, and wasn't an awkward silence, but rather…a comfortable one.

* * *

Ron lay on his back and looked at nothing. It must have been about two in the morning by the time Shego had dropped him off at his window, but he wasn't tired. He was happy, so happy. He had had so much fun. He had tried something new and he had liked it, and they had talked so much. It seemed that they had never run out of things to say to each other, and while they hadn't really discussed anything deep or important, unless you counted his discovery of the name on the card, he somehow felt…full. For once his mind was quiet. He wasn't really thinking and he wasn't worrying – about anything.

It was very quiet. The world seemed asleep. There was not even the barking of a dog or the whirring of a moter to disturb the silence.

It was…enough.

* * *

This be the end of the chapter!

Hope the spa was believable. Having never been to one myself, particularly a high-end one such as this, I had to guess and imagine quite a bit.

So, nothing of import happened in this chapter, or did it? ;) I hope you are enjoying the Ron and Shego interactions, and, please let me know if Shego is believable. I try to keep her in character so far as I can, but I do find it hard in this story sometimes.

'Hakuna Matata' is Swahili for 'there are no worries', and in addition to being used by animals in "Lion King", is used in lots of places in Africa to mean 'don't worry' when something goes wrong, or in like situations. I find it believable that Ron would use this phrase, having traveled all over the place, likely including Africa, and given his laidback nature. It seems like one he would enjoy using.

As always, you may leave reviews and messages if you are so inclined, and they will be read with much enjoyment. ;)

My other stories will likely be updated before this one is again, but as some of you may have noticed, I seem to be on a roll with updating, and I mean to keep it that way, so it won't be as long as is usual with me.

See you next time!


	16. Unwelcome Discoveries

LYBCD chapter 16

Disclaimer: Much as I would like it to be otherwise, I do not own Kim Possible. But I do own one heck of an imagination and a computer. ;)

Well, here we are at chapter sixteen. This story is the longest I've ever written, and I don't know that I would have gotten so far this quickly without all the people who have read, reviewed and enjoyed it. Thank you so much, everyone! Also a big thank you for not killing me over me long update times, (I hope).

This is kind of a short chapter and I apologize for that, but hopefully I have broken free of some of the writers' block that was gripping me regarding this story.

Not too much else to say this time, except to ask one and all to enjoy!

* * *

Dedicated to an awesome show and an awesome fanbase.

* * *

The morning sun streamed in through Kim's window and turned her red hair into a fountain of fire. She was facing away from the window, curled up under her blankets, and only stirred when the heat from the golden disk had seeped its way through the layers and she began to feel it on her skin. She shifted grudgingly and sighed. Glancing at her clock, she noticed that it was 7:24, six minutes until her alarm went off. Reluctantly, Kim pulled back her purple covers and climbed out of bed. She shut off the useless alarm to prevent it from going off in a few minutes. Then she crossed to her closet to get her bathrobe. But she paused as the long, tan coloured envelope on her dresser caught her eye.

Not another one.

Cautiously, Kim approached and ripped open the top of the envelope. She slid the crisp sheet of paper out, and unfolded it. The script inside was the same as the last mysterious letter she had received. This time it read:

_Believe in what you are, hold tight to what you have and fight for what you are in danger of losing, but always be aware of what you have already lost, for it cannot be regained._

The envelope slipped free of Kim's fingers, and as she grabbed hold of it again a colour photograph fell out and fluttered to the dark blue carpet. Kim snatched it up with a gasp.

* * *

In her room, high above the labs where Drakken cackled and fiddled around bubbling beakers, Shego was humming. The dark haired woman was crossing back and forth from a laundry basket to her mahogany dresser, folding the clean clothes and putting them away, and all the time humming softly a song whose name she couldn't quite remember, but whose melody slipped easily from between her lips.

She had enjoyed last night so much. She went to the Elysium Spa regularly, but always by herself. And last night.… She couldn't remember when she had last laughed so much. Ron could turn anything into a joke while still taking her seriously. He always had something to say and seemed to put his whole heart into whatever they happened to be doing.

Folding the last pare of black pants, Shego placed it into its appropriate drawer and straitened, satisfied. She always felt better after putting something in order. It made her feel more in control of her life and let her know that she was accomplishing something. All too often she felt as though she were merely watching life go by, contributing only a few sarcastic quips and punches, not doing anything, for herself or anyone else.

At least, she used to.

She paused at the thought and leaned back against the dresser. She couldn't let herself treat this situation as though it was permanent when she knew it wouldn't be. Right now she felt happy. Right now she wanted to do things for Ron and enjoy her time with him because he was here. When he left, or she did, that would change.

At least Drakken had been quiet lately. He was usually up by now, doing something loud and unsafe in one of his labs, or if he wasn't at that stage yet he would be barking at her over the intercom, calling her to come and hear his latest plot, or telling her to go steal something.

Come to think of it, he'd been a little too quiet lately. Maybe he was depressed or something. Shego sighed. She supposed she had better go see what was wrong with the old fool. He did crazy things when he was feeling desperate and she didn't feel like being the last one to know about it.

If she hadn't been so caught up in her thoughts, perhaps she would have sensed that something was wrong, but perhaps not. The first thing she noticed was a kind of sweet smell. It took her another five seconds to recognize it, but by then, her head was already starting to feel heavy. The gas was invisible, cloying and almost oily-smelling. She fought her way through it to the door and wrenched it open. The smell was even stronger in the corridor. It wafted over her like an invisible cloud and she staggered. She had to reach a gas mask. There was one behind glass farther down the corridor. She could see it, only ten feet and at least a hundred miles away. She took two staggering steps and fought of the dizziness. Was her vision fading, or were those figures gathering at the end of the hallway real?

It didn't really matter. All that mattered was whether she could reach the gas mask before they reached her. She took another step.

* * *

School passed slowly for Ron. This was often the case, particularly when he hadn't finished an assignment or when there was a test coming up, but today it passed slowly because he was busy wishing he were somewhere else. It had been almost two o'clock by the time he had crawled into bed last night, and he had risen promptly, (for once) at seven-thirty for school. He should have been dropping from exhaustion, but he wasn't.

He was going to see Shego again. It was a certainty now, and he smiled at the thought. He didn't know what he had expected when he had offered to be her friend. The offer had been a reaction to her pain, and he hadn't thought it out beforehand. He had never thought that they would have anything in common. He had never really thought about it at all.

And he had actually enjoyed that spa place. He, Ron Stoppable, had gone to a spa and liked it. If she ever found out, Kim would never believe it. Okay, admittedly they had only used the gym part of the spa, and such terrifying things as 'mud packs' and 'exfoliators' had been avoided, but it was still very different from his usual hangouts.

It was probably his turn to take Shego somewhere now. He wondered where they could go.

He didn't get much work done that morning but, fortunately for him, neither of his teachers noticed for once.

When lunch time rolled around, Ron realized that he was hungry, but not for the slop the school cafeteria called food. He decided to find out whether Kim would like to go to Bueno Nacho with him. He looked around to catch her eye, and that was when he realized that he hadn't seen Kim at all this morning. They hadn't been walking to school together lately, and she didn't have the same first period class. But she should have been in math with him. They hadn't had a mission last night, and there was no reason why she shouldn't be here. Unless something had come up last night while he was out. For the millionth time Ron wished that he had a kimmunicator of his own. Wade usually counted on him being home and reachable, and what did that say about his life? Maybe he could buy a cell phone, though that would require a withdrawal from his naco royalties bank account, and he wasn't sure that he could justify it to his parents.

He looked around the rapidly thinning cloud of students again; no Kim. Maybe she had already left for the cafeteria. He hadn't noticed her there during class, but then, he hadn't been looking for her. He'd been too caught up in his thoughts. He couldn't even remember what they were studying in history, even though usually he heard enough to get the general idea. Maybe Kim had skipped class to go on a date. He smiled at the thought. Kim _never_ cut class, even when they had been out until five in the morning fighting jewel thieves in the jungles of Africa.

He'd better call Wade. Wade could always be counted on to know what was happening, or if he didn't, to find out. With a sigh, Ron headed out of the classroom, in search of a payphone, and not his lunch.

He stopped by his locker to grab his mission clothes, just in case, but when he opened the locker he saw a tell-tale sheet of cream coloured paper resting conspicuously on top of the usual mess. Nonplussed, Ron picked the sheet up and slowly unfolded it. There were only two things inside; an address in Upperton written in an ornate script, and a crisp, sharp photograph of Shego lying senseless on the floor.

It took a moment for Ron to process the picture, but then panic slammed into him with the force of a doomsday device. He didn't know what was going on, but it seemed apparent that it was his fault, whatever it was. And Shego was in trouble. Shego was in trouble. He couldn't call Wade. That would lead to far too many questions, and he didn't have time for answers, real or false.

He had to leave. Right now. Wherever Kim was he was sure she was fine, and he would just have to talk to her later and make up to her for whatever it was he had done or missed.

Transportation would have been a problem if he had very far to go, but Upperton was only about a twenty minute drive. He took a cab. It was expensive, but he didn't have anyone who could take him for free, not without Kim.

Ten minutes later, he was seated in the back of the yellow cab. The driver had the radio blasting to discourage conversation, but Ron wasn't interested in talking in any case. He didn't have any kind of plan, and he couldn't help feeling that he should have called Wade and had him contact Kim. Kim would know what to do. He wasn't even sure why he wasn't calling her. Was it because she would try to get Shego arrested, or because he couldn't face telling her the truth? He didn't want to think that he was putting Shego's life in more danger in order to hide his friendship with her from Kim.

And it was obvious that Shego was only in danger because of him. He didn't know who had discovered their friendship, but someone had slipped that note into his locker, so odds were good that they were really after him. His chest tightened painfully at the memory. Shego had just looked so… Well, she hadn't looked like Shego.

He glanced out the window where houses and storefronts were passing silently. It was still only mid-morning and there were few cars on the streets and fewer pedestrians. Most people were probably at school or work. Belatedly, Ron remembered that he had a history test this afternoon that he actually had done some studying for yesterday. Ah well. It wasn't like he hadn't missed tests before. Missions had been hectic for a while, and without Kim helping him with homework his grades were seriously suffering. He always told himself that he would study more, but something always distracted him.

He looked away from the swiftly passing landscape and back at the silent driver in front of him. He found that he had been rubbing his fingers together nervously and stopped. He rested his hands on his knees where they picked nervously at the fabric of his pants.

He didn't have any gadgets of his own, so he would just have to rely on what he found in the warehouse, not to mention making plans up on his own. Kim was always the one with the plans.

"Huhyoukay?"

Ron glanced down at where Rufus' head protruded from one oversized pocket.

"Yeah buddy, I'm fine," he sighed. "I just…haven't done this a lot before. You know, solo stuff." Rufus nodded sympathetically.

"HicKP?" Ron shook his head helplessly.

"I can't Rufus. I just can't."

Rufus nodded again. He gave Ron's hand a quick rub with his head and then slipped back into the pocket. Ron shook his head again, though it was to himself this time. He knew Rufus was only trying to help, but he just couldn't handle conversation right now, even from his best friend.

They were in Upperton now, passing through the outskirts, and Ron knew that it would likely only be a few more minutes until they reached their destination. Upperton was a factory town, and through the window, Ron could see the dismal, gray blocks of concrete passing on either side. Factories that were not allowed in Middleton were constructed in Upperton instead, sometimes only a few feet past the boarders between the two cities. Upperton was not a pleasant place to go for a hike or a pleasant walk.

Not that Ron hiked a great deal. He used to go for hikes with Kim's family, but it had been a long time since they had last gone, and his own parents weren't the hiking type.

The taxi's breaks screeched as the yellow car stopped abruptly and several of Ron's organs seemed to keep moving for a moment before snapping back into his body. The cabby turned in his seat to glance back at Ron.

"That'll be seventy-five fifty, kid," he said emotionlessly.

"_S-seventy_-five fifty?"

"That's what I said.

Reluctantly, Ron dug out his wallet and handed over the money. And that was pretty much all of his money. His dad had let him take a hundred dollars out of his bank account in case he needed some spending money for dinner or a few movies, or for emergencies. But it was supposed to last for a while.

The man accepted the money, then pointedly unlocked the door. Ron climbed out and closed the door behind him.

"Want me to wait, kid?" he asked.

"No thanks." Ron watched as the cab pulled away from the curb and made an illegal U-turn. Fortunately there were no other cars on the road. The cab headed back in the direction they had come.

Ron shifted one foot. He guessed he wouldn't be coming back by cab. Then he turned and looked at the warehouse properly for the first time. It was nothing more than a rusty metal box, apparently growing out of a yard of dead grass scattered with old cans, ripped plastic bags and other refuse. A bent chain-ink fence surrounded the dismal picture, its gate hanging open like a cavity-ridden mouth. But the warehouse itself was what held Ron's gaze. It was old. And decrepit. Just a great big metal prison for rats and spiders. Ugh. He hated spiders.

Rufus made a disparaging chittering noise and Ron patted the pocket reassuringly. Yeah; Rufus was here. He still had Rufus. And, somewhere inside the haunted edifice before him, Shego was waiting for him. He knew she would be. He might not know which villain had captured her, or why they were using her to get at him, (and didn't _that_ concept baffle the mind?), but he knew he had to help her. He couldn't let anything happen to her, especially because of him. He was just glad that Rufus was here. He didn't know what he'd face inside. Ron drew in a breath.

"Well buddy," he whispered. "Here we go."

* * *

Sorry this was so long in coming gang, and thanks to those of you who are still reading. I promise I do plan to finish this story!

Next chapter the action explodes, so wish me luck writing it. And don't worry; there's a lot of this story left. I will really try to get the next one up sooner, and it will definitely be longer again.

I will give this another edit later, but I wanted to get it up tonight. All feedback is welcome.

See you all then!


End file.
